


The Dead Don’t Die - Reylo AU

by LucilleFuhrArt



Category: Star Wars Sequel Trilogy, The Dead Don't Die (2019)
Genre: Age Difference, Aliens, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Eventual Romance, Eventual Smut, F/M, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Graphic Violence, Hurt/Comfort, Rey Needs A Hug, Romance, Zombie AU, Zombie Apocalypse, Zombies, but they’re both of age, sort of slow burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-23
Updated: 2020-04-02
Packaged: 2020-05-18 14:14:12
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 15
Words: 35,761
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19336171
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LucilleFuhrArt/pseuds/LucilleFuhrArt
Summary: Ben Solo is one of three police officers in the small town of Centerville. Rey is just passing through while on a road trip with her friends. They are brought together when an environmental disaster leads to strange happenings around town. Hours of daylight have shifted, the moon is closer to the earth, animals are becoming aggressive, and scientists are warning citizens to seek shelter. Everyone has a bad feeling about this.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> The other night I saw The Dead Don’t Die in theatres, because I really wanted to see Adam in a zombie, and I LOVED it. I had a great idea for this fic, and I hope you enjoy it! This story has MAJOR spoilers for The Dead Don’t Die, so I recommend seeing the movie before starting this. I also took a lot from the film, so some of the jokes and writing style might make more sense if you’ve seen the movie. So just see the movie. It’s worth it.

"Scientists have described this event as a Polar Fracking. Dr. Leia Organa has stated that it has altered the Earth's rotation, which has been the cause of some of the strange activity around the globe. Here to give you more information is Dr. Organa herself. Good evening Dr. Organa."

"Good evening Mr. Skywalker. This indeed is being referred to by scientists around the globe as a Polar Fracking, and we have yet to determine the potential threats this may cause. Many have tried to discredit our research as a hoax, and I can assure you that this is not a hoax. Ignoring the signs from our environment could have serious consequences. The Earth seems have have been knocked off of it's axis by an unknown cause. We believe the damage to be minor, and possibly fixable, but in the meantime we will continue to research the problem and find a safe solution.  
"Some of the strange activity reported all over the world have included the disappearance of all wildlife, including pets such as cats and dogs. Even smaller pets have begun to exhibit aggressive behaviours towards their owners and fellow pets in attempts to escape their confinements. Search groups have been formed with the goal of finding and returning lost pets to their homes, but they have yet to find any success, or any sign of animal life at all. We suggest to these groups that if they are to find any animals that they remain cautious, as their behaviour may be aggressive or even violent. We have a few animals in our labs that are currently being studied for these behaviours.  
"As most of you may have noticed, it is currently 9:30pm and across the country witnesses are reporting that the sun is still in the sky, and has no signs of setting. On the other side of the world witnesses are reporting that it is currently 9:30am with no sunlight in sight. The sun appears to have remained in place since 12:00pm this afternoon. We have yet to determine exactly why this has happened. However some have reported that the moon seems to be much bigger and much closer to the earth than usual. We can confirm that this is true, and may be the cause of the strange animal behaviour.  
"With the moon much closer to the Earth than usual, we predict that more environmental changes are to come. We recommend that all citizens of areas nearby to large bodies of water or dormant volcanoes evacuate immediately. Local police officers have been informed of nearby safe areas and citizens have been offering up spare rooms in their homes to people who need to evacuate.  
"That is all that we are able to report today-"

Cliff hit the power button on the televisions remote inside the police station. 

The Centerville Police Department was small. With a population of just over 700, not much was needed. The town consisted of the police department, a small diner, a farm, a juvenile detention center, a cemetery, a hardware store, a motel, and a funeral home. Just outside the town was a small gas station that also sold many collectors items. The station had one room and two cells. One of the cells was currently occupied with the corpse of the town drunk, Mallory O'Brien, since the funeral home had no space after two golfers had been struck by lightning and were taking up all the room in the home. But it was enough space for the three officers that worked there: Officer Ben Solo, Officer Mindy Morrison, and Chief Cliff Robertson. 

"Well that's bullshit," Ben commented.

"What is?" Cliff asked, looking taken aback at the idea that one of his officers would be so ignorant that all of the strange happenings could just be a hoax.

"We haven't been told shit. If people come to us for help we've been told nothing."

"Well, Ben, we're not exactly in a dangerous area," Cliff commented, relieved. 

"Also, I'm pretty sure the rest of the world doesn't know we exist," Mindy commented, wide eyed and afraid. "We're doomed."

"Don't say that, Mindy." Cliff told her, but offered no words of comfort.

They stood staring at the black screen for a few more minutes before Ben turned to Cliff, "You sure you want to spend the night shift alone with old Mallory?"

"Yeah, I'll probably just take a nap."

"If you say so chief."

"Sleep in the cell next to a dead body? No thanks." Mindy commented.

"It's dead, Mindy, it's not going anywhere," Ben commented.

"Still..."

"Alright, well have a goodnight, Cliff."

"You too, Ben."

Ben turned to Mindy, "You need a ride home?"

"I have a car, Ben." She replied.

"You need me to walk you to it?"

"No. Can your car even fit two people, Ben?"

"Comfortably, yes."

Cliff listened to the two banter as they left the station and he locked the door behind them. It was going to be a long night. 

~*~*~*~*~

Cliff was awoken early the next morning to the sound of the phone ringing. He stumbled out of the bed in the cell opposite to Mallory's body and answered the phone drowsily. He was met by the sound of Hank, the owner of the local hardware store's, voice.

"Cliff, come down here! To the diner! You have to see this right now!" Hank exclaimed. 

"What's going on, Hank?" Cliff asked, feeling too tired to rush anywhere.

"There's been a murder!" Hank told him, and all the feelings of drowsiness were gone. 

"Make sure nobody goes inside!" Cliff told him, "I'll be right there."

Cliff hopped into the only police car in Centerville and drove off towards the diner. When he arrived Hank was standing at the door, and a small group of others stood outside crying.

Cliff hopped out of the car and walked over to Hank.

"I've called Ben and Mindy, they're on their way," Cliff told Hank, "What happened here?"

Hank was pale and his mouth hung open at a loss for words, "You have to go in and see."

Cliff turned to the door, suddenly anxious. With citizens around, he couldn't show them that he would rather not go inside. He'd rather go back to the cozy cell in the office, curl up under the covers, go back to sleep, and pretend like nothing had ever happened. But he was the Chief police officer of Centerville, and he had to get it over with. He found himself wishing he'd retired two years ago, and handing his position off to Ben like he'd planned. But he went inside.

Laying on the floor in pools of their own blood were two women. Cliff recognized them instantly. Fern, the owner of the diner, and Lily, one of Fern's workers who also worked part time at the funeral home. Both of their stomachs had been ripped open, and their guts spilled onto the floor. They looked as though they'd been chewed open. But how? Cliff noticed the smashed coffee pots on the floor, then decided he'd had enough, and left. 

"What do you think it was, Chief?" Hank commented once Cliff was standing next to him again, "An animal? Maybe several?"

Cliff let our a deep breath he didn't realize he'd been holding, "I don't know, Hank. I don't know."

Just then Ben pulled into the parking lot. His head poking out 0f his bright red, convertible smart car. He looked like a giant in that car. It was almost laughable. If it weren't for the situation, both Cliff and Hank might've.

Ben hopped out of the car and walked towards them, "What's going on?"

Cliff gestured for him to go look. Ben looked uneasily at the door and then walked inside. Minutes later he was back outside.

"So, what do we think did this?" He asked, "An animal? Several?"

"That's exactly what I said," Hank told him.

That's when Mindy pulled into the parking lot, in her regular sized car. She hopped out of the car and walked towards the three of them.

"What's going on?"

Cliff gestured for her to go look. Mindy looked uneasily at the door and then walked inside. Minutes later she was back outside, looking green in the face.

"So, what do we think did this?" She asked, "An animal? Several?"

Hank and Ben exchanged looks, then looked back at Mindy.

"I need to get back to my shop," Hank said then walked away. 

"Okay," Cliff replied, "Mindy could you take care of crowd control?"

"Yeah," she said, and walked towards the crying group of people, who Cliff assumed were family of the victims.

"So what do you think this is, Ben?" Cliff turned to ask him.

"You really want to know?" Ben asked.

"Yes."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes." 

"I'm thinking zombies." Ben told him.

"Zombies?!"

"Yeah, the undead. I mean usually they go for brains... but this is still cannibalism."

"What makes you think it wasn't an animal?"

"I've just got a bad feeling about this."

"Why?"

"I don't know."


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I can’t promise that updates will keep coming this often! I just wanted to make sure you guys had some actual Reylo content since there was none in the first chapter.

It had been Zoe's idea to go away with her best friend, her boyfriend, and her boyfriend's best friend. The plan had been a road trip across America, stopping at whatever motels they could find, eating only at unfamiliar restaurants, and visiting unknown cities. Rey had had a bad feeling about it from the start, but had decided to go after everyone else had told her that they were on board. 

Rey had also had a feeling that the reason for this trip wasn't just for fun, it was for Zoe to try to get Rey and Zach, her boyfriend's best friend, to hook up. Rey wasn't interested. She preferred men with more maturity, while Zach and Jack, Zoe's boyfriend, still acted as if they were in high school, even though the four of them were nearly 20. They'd all gone to high school together, and Rey had had no interest in Zach even back then.

They were stopping for gas just outside a small town called Centerville, it was "a real nice place" according to signs. Rey and Zoe decided to take a peek into the shop while Zach filled up the car with gas. 

Inside was a large, cluttered stash of collectibles. It made the inside of the store look overwhelming. Behind the desk was a Hobbit-looking man with round glasses. His curly hair was a light brown colour and seemed to stick out in every direction. Rey and Zoe stuck together as they picked out some drinks for the four of them, and eventually Jack and Zach followed to pay for the gas. 

"Get a lot of zombies around here?" Jack asked, referring to the shelf of zombie collectibles next to the cash register.

"That'll be $12 for the drinks," the man said.

"Alright, Frodo," Jack said.

Rey tolled her eyes and left the store with the drinks. She hopped back in the backseat and everyone else followed shortly.

"Frodo said there's a motel nearby that we can stay at," Jack told them.

"Great, I'm exhausted," Zoe said, "This is the second day in a row that it's looked like noon at 9pm. I feel like we should keep going but I'm exhausted."

They found the motel, it wasn't hard to find with how small the town was, and found two police officers standing outside talking to a man. Rey had a bad feeling about them, but they didn't have much option but to stop with how exhausted everyone was.

~*~*~*~*~

A car pulled into the motel parking lot as Ben and Cliff were explaining to Danny what had happened at the diner. They'd been going around town all afternoon and evening warning of the potential killer on the loose. Or blood thirsty animal. Or several. 

Four hipster looking kids came out of the car and gave them anxious looks. The short Mexican hipster approached the three of them. But Ben's eyes lingered on the second girl to come out of the car. The muscular one with three buns on the back of her head. It was the oddest hairstyle he'd ever seen on a real person. 

"Hey, does one of you own this place?" She asked, snapping Ben out of his distracted gaze, and remembering that it was inappropriate to stare at young people, even though he was sure that they were all at least 20.

"That would be me," Danny said, stepping forward.

"We're looking for a room," she said.

"Number 3 is free, I'll be over in a minute to get your information," Danny told her.

"Thanks." She walked back to their group and led them to room #3.

"Damn hipsters," Danny cursed. Ben instantly felt the need to defend the group of kids, but realized that Danny was probably right. 

"Anyways," Danny started again, "my cats have gone missing. It's like that scientist said on the news. But my cats are indoor cats. They never go outside. I didn't think it would apply to them." 

"We know just as much as you," Cliff told him, "Farmer Miller has reported that all of his animals have gone missing. Chickens, cows, even his dog."

"I knew it wasn't Hermit Bob," Ben said, "Miller blames him for everything."

"Yeah and there were no chickens down there when we went looking for him," Cliff explained.

The strong girl with the three buns came back out of room #3, looking anxiously up at the three of them as she approached.

"Do you know of any good restaurants in town?" She asked.

"Actually," Cliff said, "The only one in town has just closed down."

"Oh," the girl said, now biting her bottom lip, looking as though she was trying to figure out what to do from there.

"There's a vending machine inside," Danny suggested, pointing towards the lobby. Ben wanted to snap at him. Four young hipsters like them couldn't live off of chips and candy, especially not a hipster like this young girl. She wouldn't stay strong on junk food alone.

"Okay. Do you have change for $3?" She asked.

Immediately all three men started searching their pockets, but Ben was the first to find change. He easily had $5 stored away in there. Maybe more. He approached the girl and began to spill the coins into her hands.

"Oh, that's enough," she laughed, "More than enough. Here," she handed him her bills but he politely declined. He didn't need the money. He was happy for her to have it.

"Thanks," she said, then walked off towards room #3. The three men stared after her.

"Damn hipsters," Danny commented, "Shouldn't you guys warm them?"

"Good idea, Danny." Cliff replied.

"I'll do it," Ben said, walking towards their door before the words had left his mouth. 

He knocked, and the door was opened almost immediately by the strong girl. 

"Do you need the money back?" She asked.

"Oh, no," Ben started, "I just came in here to warm you guys. There's some strange things going on in town. Keep your door locked and don't answer for strangers, okay?"

"I heard you guys get a lot of zombies around here," one of the boys commented, and three of them erupted into laughter, but the strong girl just rolled her eyes.

"Thank you, officer," she said, then closed the door as he left.

"What did they say?" Cliff asked.

"I heard you guys get a lot of zombies around here."

"Huh."

~*~*~*~*~

"That cop was making googles eyes at you, Rey," Zoe commented as soon as the door had closed.

"No he wasn't." 

"I kinda think he was," Jack added. Zach glared at him, frustrated. 

"He's too old for you, Rey," Zach told her.

"Great, because I'm not interested," she said as she collapsed onto her bed next to Zoe. Throughout the whole trip she'd refused to share a bed with Zach. She wanted her disinterest to be very clear, but for some reason he kept chasing after her like a lost puppy. If Zoe ever wanted to spent the night with Jack in her bed, Rey would sleep on the floor, even if Zach offered her the bed. She didn't want to have any chance of him sneaking in next to her in the middle of the night. No one wanted to sneak onto the floor. So most nights Rey slept in bed with Zoe. 

Jack flicked on the TV to the news station. He was about to flick past when Zoe stopped him.

"Maybe we should watch, and see what that cop was talking about."

"Okay," Jack shrugged and set aside the remote. 

On the TV was an older looking man with a greying beard. The title at the bottom of the screen read "Luke Skywalker" and he looked frantic.

"Last night after the sun finally set, thousands across the country have been murdered," He said, "Citizens across the country have awoken to find their friends and family eaten alive. Authorities are suggesting that this may be the work of an animal. Or several. This may be connected to the recent disappearances and violent behaviours of animals around the globe, but there have been no witnesses to any of the murders, and none have noticed any animal activity at all. We want to warn everyone, if the sun sets tonight, to keep your doors and windows locked tight, don't let in any strangers, and stay safe. More soon to follow, this has been Luke Skywalker for Channel 25 News."

"Yikes, Okay someone lock the door please," Zach said, taking the remote and shutting off the tv. Zoe was the one to jump out of bed and assure that everything was locked. 

"Do you think we might've been right about the zombies?" Jack asked.

"No, that's ridiculous," Zoe said, "You heard the reporter. An animal. Or several. We just have to keep an eye out and we'll be fine."

But Rey refused to comment.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don’t want to get your hopes up that chapters will be posted every day, even though that’s the rate that I’m writing at. I’m just super hyped because of all of the positive feedback, and I’ve decided to extend the story by a few chapters. It was supposed to be around 5-6 chapters but now I’m thinking 10 or more. Let me know what you think!!

"This is ridiculous, Ben. I mean zombies? Really?"

It hadn't taken much convincing to get Cliff to come investigate the cemetery with Ben. Cliff seemed certain that it was an animal, or several, but Ben knew deep down that he'd had the same suspicion. 

"Those teeth marks looked human, Cliff. Besides, when was the last time you saw any animals? They've been gone for days," Ben explained as they wandered around the cemetery, the sun finally setting at 11pm.

"I suppose you're right, but who's to say it's not a cannibal?"

"Would hundreds of cannibals around the country decide to go out hunting all on the same night and kill their victims in the same way?"

"Well the Fracking has changed animal behaviours, it could be changing behaviours in some people too."

"Cliff, I know you've seen Hannibal. You can't hide that stuff from us. Humans would get sick if they ate raw meat like that. You have to cook it and make it look good just like Hannibal does."

"Another good poi-" Cliff was cut off as he collapsed to the ground. Ben looked down at him to find that he'd tripped on a hole in the ground. A hole in front of a gravestone. A hole big enough for a human body to wriggle it's way out.

"Are you convinced yet?" Ben asked as he helped Cliff to his feet. 

"Yes. Yes I am. Let's grab some weapons from the hardware store and get back to the station. We have to warn Mindy."

~*~*~*~*~

"Zombies?!" Mindy shrieked as Ben and Cliff brought in boxes full of shotguns and machetes, along with the horrible news from the graveyard.

"I'm not sure why you sound so surprised," Ben commented.

"Zombies aren't real, Ben."

"They weren't real. They are now." 

"But how do you guys know?"

"It's always been a suspicion, Mindy," Cliff chimed in.

"I thought we agreed on animals? Or several?"

"Look at the evidence," Ben began to explain, "This is all happening because of the Polar Fracking. It's not like this is random. Weird things have been happening for days. The moon is closer to the Earth. That scientist lady said anything is a possibility.  
"How would an animal, or several, get into the diner? Fern wouldn't let them in, and last I checked they don't have the brainpower to open doors. Even if they did Fern and Lily would know to hide or get out right away. Whoever this was took them by surprise.  
"And if you looked closely at the teethmarks on the body, they weren't sharp. They were blunt. Like human teeth. We discussed the possibility of cannibals, but we have yet to see people run rabid because of this, and what non-rabid human would eat another human raw? They would've been in a diner. Could've fried up the organs. But they were just ripped out and eaten.  
"Then the holes in the ground at the cemetery was the dealbreaker. If all the other evidence didn't prove it then that did."

"When did you become Sherlock Holmes?" Mindy commented.

Ben shrugged, "wasn't that hard to figure out."

"So how do we kill a zombie," Cliff asked.

"Kill the head."

"What?"

"Kill the head. If the brain is intact the zombie can live. If you cut the head off then it's no longer connected to the body. Stab it in the brain and it's dead," Ben told them.

There was a thump sound from behind them, and they all turned to the glass front doors to see a bloodied and dirty Farmer Miller pounding at the door.

"Do you need further evidence?" Ben asked, gesturing towards the man at the door. Mindy just screamed.

"What do we do?" Mindy asked, "We're the police shouldn't we be protecting people?"

"Yeah probably," Cliff said, "I'm just not sure how."

"Kill the head. Right, Ben?"

"None of us have ever dealt with this before, it wouldn't be smart to go out there not knowing what to expect," Ben said.

"So what do we do?" Mindy asked, now frantic.

"Wait," Cliff told them, sounding more like a question than a command. 

Mindy suddenly grabbed Cliff by the wrist and gasped, "Mallory!"

The three spun around instantly to find a decomposing Mallory O'Brien standing in the doorway of her cell, which had been left open. She reeked of booze stronger than ever, and repeatedly muttered something under her breath that sounded like "Chardonnay", which surprised none of the three. 

"Do something!" Mindy screamed.

"Ben!" Cliff yelled.

"What?!"

"You're the expert! Do something!"

"I've never done this before!" He yelled back at Cliff as he jumped to their box full of weapons, grabbing the first thing he could get his hands on. He pulled out a long machete, and suddenly wondered why they didn't just bring guns. A machete required him to be close. 

Ben put all of his weight into the swing at Mallory's neck. It hit with a dull thud and dust sprayed at Ben's face from the wound. It was as if all the blood in her body has turned to dirt. Like all of her organs had already decomposed completely. It was wedged into her neck, but not deep enough to decapitate her. Zombie Mallory turned towards Ben and started to walk towards him. Ben panicked and yanked the machete back out of her neck, and swung again at her. It hit with another spray of dust, but still wasn't deep enough. He was quickly being pushed towards the glass door where Farmer Miller was waiting on the other side. Ben took a step back, then lunged at Mallory, swinging the blade once more. The machete cut clean through her neck, and her decapitated head hit the floor like a bag of sand, her body following shortly afterwards. 

He started down at her, and the dust leaking out of her neck from her head, and her shoulders from her body. It was textured like sand, smelled like dirt (and Chardonnay), and was the colour of dust. She looked just as dead as she had before she was undead, but this time decapitated.

Ben looked up at Cliff and Mindy. Mindy was holding back tears, and Cliff's mouth hung open with his eyes wide in horror.

"Now we know what to do," Ben said after a moment of silence.

"I cannot do this," Mindy said, "I mean I didn't like Mallory. She was kind of a bitch, but not enough to kill her! We're police officers we're supposed to be protecting people, not killing them!"

"Mindy!" Cliff exclaimed turning to grip her by the shoulders, "That was not Mallory. Mallory is dead, and if we don't stop other undead like Farmer Miller over there, then people who are still alive will be killed."

There was a thump from the front door and all three of them screamed. They turned to see a woman with long white hair standing at their door with a katana in her hands. Farmer Miller's body laid dusty on the ground, missing his head. 

She was the woman who'd taken over the Funeral Home. Zelda Winston. The woman Lily had worked for before her gruesome murder. Rumour around town was that he had a huge Buddha in the back room of the home where she practiced her sword skills. Rumour also told that she was Scottish or Irish, but she'd never confirmed that for anyone, she just ignored the question when it was asked. Zelda was now knocking on the glass doors of the police station, looking expressionless and terrifying. 

More zombies coming towards the station we're made clear as they stepped out of the dark and into the light cast from the inside of the station. The three officers could do nothing but stare in horror, convinced that they were about to watch this weird woman get eaten alive. 

Before they could step any closer, Zelda whipped around with her katana and decapitated all of them with one swing of her blade. 

"Let her in!" Cliff gasped. Ben unlocked the door for her and she stepped inside calmly. 

"Isn't that your job?" Was the first thing she said in her thick Scottish accent, gesturing to the dead bodies she'd left behind her. 

"We're still figuring it out," Cliff replied.

"You guys need to be out there protecting your citizens," Zelda told them.

"But then who would watch the station?"

"I can," Zelda offered, "Me and her."

Mindy's eyes went wide when Zelda pointed at her, "No. If you guys are leaving then so am I."

"Zelda why don't you go save all of the people?" Ben asked, "You're clearly better at this than we are."

"This town needs to see their fearless leaders right now," she explained in her thick accent, "Not the crazy lady from the funeral home. They'll think that death has come to get them."

"She has a point," Cliff said. 

"So are we doing this?" Ben asked.

"I think so."

"You've gotta be kidding me!" Mindy exclaimed.

"What are you talking about? You were the one insisting we save people."

"That was before I had to watch Ben take off Mallory's head."

"You're welcome to stay here," Zelda offered.

Mindy looked at her in horror, then turned back to Cliff, "fine I'll go."

"Okay we'll take the patrol car," Cliff told them, "I'll drive."

"Wait, officer Ben?" Zelda called to him, "May I borrow the keys to your vehicle? In case of an emergency."

"Oh yeah, sure," Ben said, fishing into his pocket to pull out his keys and placed them in Zelda's open hand. 

"Ah, Star Wars," she said, noticing his keychain.

"Yeah I'm a fan," he told her, "it's the-"

"Small red one?"

"Yeah."

"Alright, Ben let's go," Cliff called him as they left the station and went out into the unknown darkness. 

~*~*~*~*~

At the sound of the knock at the door, Jack went to the window while the rest had jumped behind their beds to hide.

"What are you doing?!" Zoe yelled at him. 

"It's just the motel owner it's fine," Jack said as he unlocked and opened the door for the man on the other side.

"Jack, stop!" Rey yelled, but it was too late. A zombie of the man who had given them their room stumbled in and latched his teeth onto Jack's throat. All of them began to scream. 

Rey turned to the bedside table, searching for something she could use to fight back. A pad of paper, a lamp, an alarm clock. She pulled open the drawer to find some pens, and a pair of scissors. The scissors would do. She took them and turned back towards the intruder. 

Jack's throat was half chewed, blood was spraying everywhere and he tried to free himself and cover up the wound. But the zombie motel owner just shoved him to the ground with his eyes fixed on Zach. 

"Zoe, we have to get out of here!" Rey exclaimed, trying to pull her best friend towards the door. But Zoe was fixed on Jack's dying body and crawled over to him.

"Zoe, stop! He's gone!"

Zoe kept moving towards Jack, and the zombie motel owner's dragging foot got caught on her outstretched arm and it tumbled to the ground. As it fell it grabbed ahold of Zach's leg.

As much as Rey disliked Zach, she didn't want him to die, "Zach, don't let it bite you! Shake it off!" 

But instead of wriggling free like Rey had suggested, Zach decided to take the more masculine course of action, and start beating it in the face with his fists. All the zombie had to do was open his mouth and wait, before it clamped down on Zach's fisted hand. 

Zach screamed in pain and pulled his hand away, ripping away at layers of skin now stuck in the zombie's teeth. He stumbled and fell backwards as the zombie's grip was still strong on his ankle. His head hit the bedside table with a crack, and Rey knew that even if the zombie didn't eat him he was too far gone to be saved.

Rey got to her feet and grabbed Zoe by the arms, trying to pull her to her feet, "we have to run while it's distracted." The zombie was now gnawing on Zach's leg like a dog with a bone.

"We have to help him!" She yelled, pointing towards Zach, and finally seeming to realize that her boyfriend was gone.

"Zoe if we don't run we're going to die!"

"No! We have to help, he's still alive!" 

Having had enough of this argument, Rey clutched the scissors in her right fist. She took a deep breath and lunged at the zombie, aiming straight for the head. There was no fight. She landed the blow at the base of its skull, jutting the scissors up towards the brain. Dust shot out of the wound and Rey held her breath in order to avoid inhaling it. It slowly went still and died again. 

"Zach!" Zoe yelled, finally on her feet, and ran to his side 

Rey could see the spot of blood where his skull had cracked on the bedside table, and a trail down to where he was now laying. His hair was matted with red, and the carpet was stained like a halo around his head. His eyes were still open, but glossed over. He was gone.

Rey moved to Zoe's side and put an arm around her as she sobbed. However Rey couldn't muster up the emotional strength to let out even a single tear. 

They sat for what felt like hours, before Rey got up and dragged the undead body out of their room, and locked the door. She wasn't prepared to deal with Jack and Zach's bodies, and she didn't think Zoe was either. 

Behind her Rey heard a gasp.

"Rey, he's awake!"


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is where it will start to get confusing if you haven’t seen the movie!! This ones kinda short so I’ll try to update again ASAP!!

After checking the diner, and the funeral home the three officers found themselves at Danny's motel. It looked perfectly average. The lights were on in a few rooms and the lobby, but there was no sign of anyone. 

"Is it worth checking?" Mindy asked.

"Yes," Ben replied without hesitation, "those hipsters might still be in there." 

"Hipsters?" 

"A group of young kids came into town today," Cliff explained to Mindy, "Ben's got feelings for one of them."

"No, I don't," Ben shot back, "They're kids."

"Well someone's gotta go look," Cliff said, "Can I assume that'll be you, Ben?"

"I'm not going out there alone. I need backup in case something is wrong."

"Fine, I'll go too but you're taking the lead."

"You're not leaving me in here alone," Mindy added.

"How about we stop talking about it and actually do it," Ben said as he got out of the car. Cliff and Mindy followed shortly. 

Ben made a beeline for room #3, remembering that was the room that the strong girl and her hipster friends were staying in. Their car was still in the parking lot, the exact place and position it had been in when Ben saw it last. He had hope that everything was fine. But as he got closer to the door he noticed something that made his heart drop in his chest.

Danny's dead body laid outside of the door to room #3. He had been undead, Ben could tell. 

Without thinking he pounded on the door. 

"Open up it's the police!" Ben yelled.

“Ben, be quiet!" Mindy exclaimed, "we don't want to lure anymore of them over here." 

Ben reached down to Danny's body, carefully avoiding the head. He found Danny's pockets, searched through them, and pulled out the keys to the motel.

He looked through the keychain. 10 keys in total. Ben guessed that the key with the big #3 on it had to be the one for the room he was standing in front of, and when he twisted it in the lock he found that to be the case.

The door clicked open, and Ben held his machete by his side, ready to swing at a moments notice. He pushed the door and it swung open on its hinges. Inside was a horrific scene.

Three of the hipsters laid dead in pools of blood on the ground. All three had wounds in their temples, as if they'd been stabbed by something long and sharp. Only one, one of the boys, had dust coming from his wound instead of blood. Ben looked around frantically for the strong girl, but there was no sign of her. He was both relieved and afraid.

"What happened here?" Cliff asked as he followed Ben inside.

"It looks like they were attacked," Ben started, "All of them, but only one of them became a zombie," he said, gesturing to the boy with the dust on his face, "I think the other girl must've stabbed them all in the brain to prevent the rest from coming back to life."

"But how did they die?" Mindy asked.

"They could've been attacked by the one zombie boy," Cliff suggested.

"But he's all covered in blood too," Ben said, "it must've been Danny who got to him and then he got to everyone else." 

"But then where the other girl?" Cliff asked.

"I don't know," Ben replied as he walked further into the room, being careful to avoid stepping on anyone or in any blood. The second thing he'd noticed after the group of dead hipsters and the muscular one not being one of them, was that the bathroom door was closed, but there was no blood spatter on it like there was the rest of the walls. That door had been open when the fight had gone down, so who closed it? Just as he'd done with the motel room door he twisted the knob and pushed the door open without entering in case of danger. 

Ben had to jump back as a pair of scissors came flying at him from within the room. He was taken off guard and the girl inside threw herself at him and wrestled him to the ground. It wasn't until the girl had him straddled, legs around his waist and arms punning down his, that he regained his breath.

"Don't shoot!" Ben yelled, knowing instinctively that his partners had their weapons raised at the young girl.

"Are you alive!" The girl yelled accusingly at the three of them.

"Yes," Ben replied, "we came to make sure you were okay."

"You're a little late for okay," she replied, looking down at him with sadness and anger in her eyes. Ben found himself just wanting to hug her.

"I'm sorry," Ben said, "I am so sorry. If you come with us we can keep you safe."

The girl let his arms free, and rolled off of him.

"Do you have more weapons?" She asked, "So I can defend myself?"

"Yes. A whole box full in the back seat of the car," Cliff told her. 

"Okay, I'll come," and all of a sudden she burst into tears. Sobs shook her whole body in less than a second when before she'd been completely calm and composed.

Ben say up, put a hand on her shoulder, and squeezed, "what's your name?"

"Rey," she replied in between sobs.

"I'm so sorry, Rey. You did the right thing. I know it was hard, and I know it hurt, but I promise you you did the right thing." 

Her crying paused and she looked up at him with tears still running down her cheeks, "Can we leave? I don't want to be near them anymore."

"Of course," Ben said and helped her to her feet, "I'm Ben. This is my partner Mindy and our Chief Cliff."

She nodded in acknowledgement but kept her eye on the ground. 

The three of them escorted her to the car, Ben making sure to have his arm around her shoulders at all times. He could tell that she was quickly recovering. She stood up straighter and straighter by the step. She stopped crying and stopped shaking. Her breath became more steady.

"Where are we going?" She asked once they got into the car. 

"Making sure everyone is okay," Mindy told her.

"And next stop is the cemetery," Cliff added, "but I'm pretty sure if there's anyone alive who's still there then they're trying to get killed."

"We still have to check," Rey said, instantly asserting herself as one of the team. A leader at that.

"I agree," Ben added.

~*~*~*~*~

"Don't hit it!" Mindy shrieked too late. 

The car bounces as the undead body rolled beneath it, followed by another, and another, and another. By the 5th body the car's wheels were stopped from moving by the detached limbs stuck in the tires. 

"You've gotta be kidding me," Rey cursed under her breath. 

They had made it to the cemetery. It had been flooded with zombies, and instead of getting out and fighting them like Rey had suggested, Cliff had opted to drive through them instead. That poor decision had led them to being stuck, now surrounded by zombies scratching with their dull nails at the windows, closing in around them and seeming to double in number.

"Well," Ben said, oddly peacefully, "We're stuck."

"What do we do?" Mindy asked. 

"I don't know," he replied, "Try driving again."

"That's not going to help," Rey said, "It'll just get us more stuck, or suck more zombies under." 

"So what do we do?" Mindy asked again.

"Wait," Cliff suggested. 

"They're going to get in before they leave us alone." 

"Something might distract them."

"Like what, Ben?"

"I don't know."

They sat in silence for a few minutes. Rey's mind was running though plans and ways to escape, but everyone else seemed to have given up. Every once and a while Mindy would let out a whimper of terror, or Cliff a long sigh, but she never heard anything from Ben.

Her thoughts were interrupted by another scream from Mindy.

"It's my granny!" She yelled, deafening the whole car, and Rey grew increasingly frustrated with her lack of courage.

She looked over to see the woman beside her with her hand pressed to the window, staring an old woman zombie on the other side.

"She died three years ago."

"Mindy, you need to snap out of it," Rey told her. 

"I can't," she said, her eyes still glued to her undead grandmother, "I can't fight this anymore it's too much."

"Mindy, what are you talking about?" Cliff asked, worry growing in his voice. 

"I'm coming, granny!" She yelled before pushing open the door and throwing herself into the crowd.

"Oh my god!"

The zombies were distracted for a moment when Mindy joined them, and Rey was able to jump to the door and slam it closed before any zombies got inside.

"What the fuck was that about?" Rey exclaimed, "and why the hell are you two so calm throughout all of this?" 

"Oh," Ben said, "Jim let me read the script."

"He let you read the script?" Cliff asked in surprise.

"Yeah the whole thing."

"He only let me read the scenes that we were in."

"What a dick."

"Stop!" Rey interrupted, "I read the script too."

"What?!" 

"Shut up! I read the script but that doesn't mean it isn't horrifying when my best friends get killed right in front of my eyes! And it sure as hell doesn't mean we need to follow the script! If we follow it then this is where our story ends! Do you really want to die here? Because I don't."

Cliff and Ben looked at her in shock and confusion.

"We have to follow the script," Cliff said.

"No, we don't. What is Jim gunna do if we don't?"

Cliff and Ben exchanged looks as they realized hat there was nothing binding them to the script that that asshole Jim Jarmusch had written. It suddenly made everything much more terrifying. 

Ben turned back to Rey, "So how do we get out of this?"


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the late update, I’ve been on vacation! This chapter was supposed to be super long but it was taking way too much time to write it so I decided to split it up so you could get an update sooner. Let me know what you think! I love reading comments!!!

"The only way we're gunna get out of here is if they're distracted by something else," Rey told them. 

"How do you suggest we do that?" Cliff asked, "we're kind of stuck in here."

"Does anyone have a cell phone? We could call for help?"

"My phone has been dead for days," Ben said, "what about you, Rey, you're a young hipster don't you have a phone?"

"A what? Never mind. I lost mine at some point after the zombie motel owner attacked me and my friends." 

"So no phones."

"What about your radio?" Rey asked.

"We're the only cops in town, and we can't get ahold of anyone outside of here on a normal day," Cliff explained.

"Just give it a shot."

Ben was the one to reach forward, flick on the switch, and start twisting the dial. It was all static. 

"Fuck," Ben cursed under his breath.

"Wait!" Rey said, "did you hear that?"

"What?"

"Listen close."

Through the static, the three of them holding their breaths and straining to hear what Rey did, they began to hear numbers being listed off. 

"5,5,6,7,2,4,3,6,2,4,1..." the robotic like voice said through the static.

"What is that?" Cliff asked.

"Can you try to tune into it more?" Rey asked, and Ben slowly and carefully adjusted the dial. 

At first the sound got further away, and Ben turned the dial in the other direction. Suddenly it got clearer. It was still hard to hear over the static but they no longer had to strain.

"Captain Winston," the robotic voice said.

"Winston?" Rey muttered under her breath. 

"Winston like Zelda Winston? The funeral home lady?" Ben asked.

"Is she a captain?"

"No. She's a Buddhist and really good with a sword but that's about it."

The voice on the radio started up again, "Come in Captain Winston."

Cliff turned to Ben and Rey, "Was this in the script?"

"No. Not the one I read at least," Ben said.

"Forget the script, we're long past the script now," Rey snapped.

A new voice came in through the radio as clear as day, "I'm here, General."

"That's Zelda," Cliff said, "That's her accent."

"Prepared for rescue?" The robotic voice on the radio asked.

"Yes," Zelda replied. 

Suddenly there was a light in the sky coming through the left side windows of their car. They had to crane their neck to see what it was, but once they did it was clear what they were seeing.

It was a UFO. A classic X-Files-esque UFO. A light beamed down from the center, and the three of them watched the light cast down on Zelda, who was standing in the middle of the graveyard untouched by zombies.

The zombies surrounding their car were distracted by the light, and started to move away from them and towards Zelda. Rey was afraid for a moment that they were going to get her, but then she started to levitate into the sky, and shot into the UFO through the beam of light. Within an instant the UFO was gone.

The two men continued to stare blankly up at the sky, while Rey realized that all of the zombies surrounding their car were completely gone, off in the direction of Zelda's light. 

Rey reached over to the box of weapons next to her and pulled out a machete, then got out of the car.

"Rey, what the fuck are you doing?!" Ben called after her, immediately getting out of the car to either protect or stop her.

"Help me clear out the tires!" She told him, "Quickly!"

Rey dropped the machete on the ground beside he and began to pull at the limbs and body parts stuck in the wheels of Cliff's patrol car. Most were easy to remove, but one arm Rey had to dig her feet into the mud and pull as hard as she could.

"Rey they're coming back!" Ben yelled at her, starting to panic.

"Check the back tire!" 

"They're all cleared!"

"Then get over here and help me!"

Ben ran over to her side and saw what she was doing. He grabbed the machete from the ground behind her and swung it over his shoulder.

"Move!" He yelled, and she let go of the arm, falling into the mud on her back. 

The machete hit the arm with a dull thud. Ben ripped the machete away from the tire, bringing the arm with it. The detached limb flew off into the direction of the oncoming heard.

Ben grabbed Rey's bicep and yanked her to her feet. With his free hand he opened the door for her and shoved her inside like a rag doll. He ran around to the other side of the car and hopped into the back seat next to her.

"Are you okay?" Ben asked as Cliff hit the gas and they drove down the path and out of the cemetery.

"Yeah I'm fine. Cliff, please, god, do not run over anymore zombies," Rey said, still catching her breath.

"You've got mud all over you," Ben commented.

"I feel like that's the least of our concerns right now."

"Don't get mud on my seats, okay?"

"Shut up, Cliff."

"Where are we going?" Rey asked.

"I have no idea," Cliff replied.

"We need to continue the patrol," Rey started, "there's gotta be people alive."

"What are we going to do if we find them?" Ben asked.

"Bring them with us," she told them, "We can take trips and drop them off at the motel. Our best chance right now is to stick together. The motel is the best place for that. As long as they know not to let any zombies into their room then they're safe."

"I like that plan," Cliff added.

"So where to first?"

"The hardware store," Ben said, "we can get as many weapons as we can and leave them at the motel so when we drop people off they can defend themselves if something goes wrong."

"I think Hank has a truck," Cliff added.

"Perfect let's go."


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m back from vacation so post should be more frequent again! I really hope you’re enjoying this!

It didn't take them long to arrive at the hardware store. When they pulled into the parking lot the front door was swarmed with undead bodies scratching and pounding to get in. But the door hadn't budged, so Ben assumed that Hank must've boarded the place up well. A few of the zombies noticed the light from their car and turned towards them. 

"Do you think he's in there?" Cliff asked.

"It looks like he's locked himself inside," Ben told him.

"So how do we get to him? And the weapons?"

"We have to kill them," Rey said, "Kill the zombies and get the weapons."

"You're gunna do that?" Cliff asked, raising his eyebrows like he in no way planned on going out there. 

"We are whether you like it or not," Rey told him, "We have a better chance in bigger numbers. That's why we need to get everyone in one place."

"Fine but I'm taking the shotgun."

"No!" Rey said, putting her and over the box of weapons to prevent Cliff from grabbing the gun. 

"What now?"

"Remember in the graveyard? All of the zombies left when Zelda's UFO came down."

"So?"

"So they're drawn to noise and light. If we're going to do this we need to be quiet and not attract any attention," Rey explained, "Look, they're already noticing us."

"If they already know we're here then why does it matter if we make noise?"

Rey sighed in frustration, "It could lead other zombies to us."

"Can we just go, please," Ben said, "They're getting closer and I don't want to be trapped in here. Cliff just listen to her, she got us out of the graveyard."

"Fine." 

The three of them got out of their cars. Rey and Ben with machetes and Cliff with some kind of crowbar. It was the first thing he could grab from the box that wasn't a shotgun. Rey and Ben took the lead, and Cliff took out the few that managed to slip past the two so that they wouldn't be taken by surprise. It took no time at all to get to the front of the stone, but by then they were stepping on the dead bodies. They crunched like sand beneath their feet. Rey was just grateful it wasn't cracking bones.

Ben had been correct in assuming that Hank had boarded the place up. The door was nailed so tight that it wouldn't budge when he tried the handle.

"Hank!" Cliff called from behind, and Ben stepped out of the way to let him through to the door, "Hank its Cliff. I'm here with Ben and a girl from out of town. We're here to help you get somewhere safe."

"And how do I know you're not a zombie?" A muffled voice, clearly Hank's, called from behind the door.

"When was the last time you heard a zombie talk?" Ben chimed in.

They listened to quiet and non-understandable discussion before Hank spoke up again, "You'll have to come around back. We can't un-board this door."

"We'll meet you back there," another voice added.

They crept around back, making sure to be as quiet as possible. Ben and Rey kept an eye out in front, and Cliff made sure nothing was following them. They got to the back for to find a young man already holding it open for them, someone that none of them had ever seen before. 

Ben nodded his thanks and walked inside to find Hank and Bobby. 

"You guys okay?" Ben asked.

"Yeah the barrier's been holding up pretty good," Hank told him.

"Why didn't you board up the back?" Cliff asked.

"In case we needed an escape route," Bobby told them, "The back door locks up really well. No way any zombies were getting in through there."

"Who do you have with you?" Hank asked as Rey walked past Ben and Cliff to explore the hardware store and all of the potential weapons.

"I'm Rey," she said while continuing to search the store, "I'm from out of town."

"And who are you?" Ben asked, gesturing to the man who had let them in through the back door.

"This is Finn," Hank explained, "My son."

"Nice to meet you," Finn said, extending his hand.

Ben took it and introduced himself. Cliff did the same.

"So what's the plan, Cliff?" Bobby asked him.

"It's Rey's plan," Cliff said, "She should explain it."

"Thanks," Rey said as she re-approached the group after having looked at everything in the store, "We need to save as many people as we can and bring them back to the motel. Once we're there we can use supplies from this shop to build up the locks on the individual rooms, and barriers around the motel itself."

"Why?" Bobby asked, "We're perfectly safe in here so why move?"

"We'll be safer in a group."

"How?" Bobby shot back. 

"Because what happens if one of you gets sick in here? Or what if you run out of food? You'll be left vulnerable. The more people we have the more capable we are of defending ourselves, and when we work with others we can share our resources," Rey told him.

"Bobby, this is a really good idea," Finn said, "You can stay here if you want, but we're taking the supplies and going with her."

"Fine," Bobby grumbled.

"Thank you," Rey nodded to Finn.

"We were wondering if we could use your truck, Hank?" Cliff asked.

"Of course. What are we taking with us? Just weapons?" 

"Everything," Rey said, "We need to fortify the motel so we can sleep safely at night, and we'll need as many supplies as possible. Safer to take it all now then to have to come back."

"Good plan," Finn said.

Ben felt a pang of something... jealousy? No. Finn's friendliness towards the young hipster he'd grown rather fond of was making him suspicious. Why was he agreeing with her on everything? Ben agreed with everything she had planned, so he couldn't figure out why he had a problem with Finn doing it. Ben shrugged it off. It was a good plan and if anything more people should be agreeing with it. 

"Let's get to it."

~*~*~*~*~

They returned to the motel 2 hours later in the police car with two cars behind them, and one pickup truck full of supplies. Ben and Rey were the first out to take out the few stray zombies that had wandered onto the property. Then the cars parked side by side.

"Can you three take one room for now?" Rey asked, gesturing to Finn, Hank, and Bobby.

"Sure," Hank agreed.

"We don't know how many people we'll end up picking up so we should keep as many rooms open as possible. You guys take room 2 and me, Ben, and Cliff will take room 1. Room 3 is unavailable until we get it cleaned up."

"Copy that, General," Finn joked. Rey rolled her eyes but the smile on her face gave away her appreciation for the humour. 

Ben felt that familiar pang again. It was getting too familiar. 

"How are we splitting up?" Cliff asked.

"I'll stay here," Hank offered, "I know my supplies better than anyone. Finn knows too, but he may be of better use for killing zombies."

"I'm fine with either," Finn said.

"I could stay behind and keep an eye out for zombies. I'm getting the hang of it now," Cliff said.

"No," Rey told him, "You and Ben need to be bringing people in. They need to see their fearless leaders right now. They're not gunna willingly come with people they don't know, or Frodo over here."

"Hey!"

"I can stay behind," Rey said. That was the first thing Rey had said that Ben didn't agree with. He knew she could take care of herself, but he still found himself wanting to be near here.

"So where are me and Bobby going?" Finn asked. 

Rey seemed to have decided well in advance, "Finn go with Ben and Cliff," she said wrinkling her nose in Bobby's direction, "I want people to feel safe when they agree to come with you." 

"What the hell, kid?" 

"Got it," Cliff said, "Let's go guys."

Ben quickly approached Rey, "Are you sure you're okay to stay here alone with these guys?"

"Yeah, I can defend myself," she told him, "Don't worry about me." 

She walked off to where Hank and Bobby were standing near his pickup and Ben stared after her.

"Ben, let's go!"

~*~*~*~*~

"So what have we got for strengthening up these doors?" Rey asked.

"Well, I've looked at them," Hank started, "And the whole problem is in the locks themselves. The doors are heavy duty enough to survive a beating. To be safe we can reinforce them a bit more, but our best bet is on the locks."

"Then let's start there."

"I've got some industrial locks here. We'd need to make some adjustments to the walls, but that won't be hard. We should add secondary locks to the top and bottom of the doors too. We can throw in a few latches too, for when people settle in for the night they can have an extra feeling of safety."

"Do we have supplies for some kind of alarm? Like if someone pounds at the door a bell will ring or something?"

"I'll see what I can do."

"Well just tell us what to do and we'll get started," Rey smiled at him.

"I'm going to take a quick bathroom break but if you two could fish as many locks and keys out of my truck as you could find that would be great," Hank told them and then walked off into Room #2, closing the door behind him.

Rey opened up the back of the pickup truck and began to shuffle through the pile of supplies when she was pulled by the back of her shirt and fell to the ground on her back. The fall knocked the wind out of her and it took her a moment to re-focus. She grabbed the machete she had lodged in her belt with her right hand and held it up while she found her feet. When she stood up there were no zombies, just Bobby.

"Did you do that?" She asked, pointing her weapon at him.

"Yes."

"Why?"

"What's your problem with me?" He asked in more of an accusing tone than a questioning one. 

"What are you talking about?"

"You've had it out for me since the start."

"I've not! You wanted to stay at the hardware store and I told you why that was a bad idea."

"You said that people we rescue wouldn't want to come with me. That they'd be more willing to come with Finn, a stranger than me."

"I don't want your negative attitude affecting this plan," Rey said, beginning to get angry, "You've not exactly been very kind either. If I sent you with Ben and Cliff and you didn't fully believe in this plan then how are you going to convince others to believe in it? I don't want something you say to ruin this whole thing. Your attitude could get us killed. If  you don't get yourself in check by the time we're settled here you can leave."

Bobby's face was red with anger, but he said nothing else. He stormed off into the darkness, and Rey couldn't have cared less. If he got attacked they'd be stronger without him.

~*~*~*~*~

Most people, the three men had found, were either locked in their homes or had already packed up and left town. In one case an elderly couple had had no clue what was going on. They'd been the most difficult to convince to come back to the motel, but most of the problem came from convincing them that something was actually wrong, since they'd barely seen a single zombie since their patrol started.

Cliff, Ben, and Finn had already sent 5 households in the direction of the motel. They'd all taken their own cars and brought their own share of food and what they considered weapons. 5 households of the 15 they'd investigated. They'd searched all of the public spaces to find them empty. They'd yet to have anyone refuse their plan, 10 of those houses had simply been empty. Ben wasn't even sure how many had actually been occupied in the first place. It was hard to keep track in such a small town. 

They'd decided at the second empty house that they'd eventually break in and loot the houses of all their food and weapons, but they'd wait in case the occupants had just not heard their knocks and shouts. 

"How many of these houses do you think actually have people in them?" Finn asked from the backseat as they slowly cruised down the street full of dark houses.

"I don't know," Cliff said, "But if any of these places do have people in them then they've all locked themselves up pretty tight."

"Maybe we should just head back," Ben said. He'd tried hard to hide it, but his distraction from their mission was becoming more and more evident, and Ben didn't want either of the two men to figure out why, "We've already sent Rey and Hank a ton of people to take care of. They could probably use our help."

"That seems like a good idea," Finn chimed in, and Ben bit the inside of his cheek to keep from saying anything. He didn't like Finn, and it wasn't for any good reason other than jealousy. 

"Alright let's go," Cliff said, quickly turning the car around. 

"How are you two feeling about this?" Finn asked, "You know this place better than I do."

"I think Rey's idea is smart," Ben told him, "We're lucky to have her with us."

"Yeah, but I have a hunch that some of the men in this town aren't gunna like being bossed around by a teenage hipster. A teenage girl hipster," Cliff said.

"Why? She's smart, and she's right," Ben snapped, feeling a strong urge to defend the girl he hardly knew, even though he felt that Cliff might be right, "Sorry. You're right."

"Well we're the cops and we've got her back," Cliff reassured him. Ben didn't appreciate the underlying tone of what Cliff had said. He said it as if he knew a secret about Ben, and Ben had no secrets.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for being so patient with this update!! Life got really busy and I’ve barely had any time to write. I hope you enjoy!!

Rey's heart sank in her chest when she saw the police car pull back into the motel parking lot. 5 cars of people had been sent back to the motel, and Rey had been hoping to help many more people. 

They had everyone who'd come back helping Hank and Bobby - who had eventually returned after their argument - setting up the locks on their doors so that they could all settle once everyone had arrived. The process was moving surprisingly quickly, and Rey was sure that they'd have all the locks on before it was too late to sleep. But if all the people who were to be rescued were here then they wouldn't need all 20 of the rooms that they were preparing.

Rey jogged up to the police car as it parked and asked immediately as Ben opened the door, "Is that everyone?"

"No," Ben told her, "Everyone seems to be locked in for the night so we're going to go back in the morning."

A wave of relief swept over Rey, "Oh good. I was beginning to think that we'd lost everyone."

"I think this town's a lot smarter than anyone gives us credit for," Cliff added, "We know how to lock down during a zombie attack."

Rey smiled at him. 

"I'm sorry if we worried you," Ben said.

"It's fine. I'm over it."

"We should really get some rest," Finn said as he approached the others, "I'll make sure my dad has everyone's rooms set up."

"Thank you, Finn," Rey said, "I'm exhausted."

Ben felt another pang of jealousy.

"Oh, Ben," she said, "The keychain you gave us has only 10 keys but there are 20 rooms. Where are the rest?"

"Oh," Ben smiled, "Only me and Cliff know this, so don't tell anyone, but each key works for two doors. 1 and 11, 2 and 12, and so on."

"Oh... That doesn't seem smart."

"Danny liked to find loopholes," Ben shrugged, and Rey let out a small smile. 

"How are you feeling?" He asked her, awkwardly throwing his hand onto her shoulder in an attempt of friendliness, after the silence between them had become weird.

Rey shifted uncomfortably under his touch. 

"Uh, okay," she nodded, "I'm gunna go help Hank." 

"Are you sure you don't want to get settled?"

"I won't be able to settle properly if I don't know that everyone's alright," Rey told him, "But I'll see you in our room," she said before walking away.

His heart fluttered in his chest. They were still sharing a room. He was sharing a room with her. Not Finn. Him. There were two beds in each motel room. Two doubles. Two beds and three people. She struck him as the type of person who would want to sleep alone. But Ben didn't want to sleep with Cliff, nor did he want to take the floor.

Ben's mind drifted off into his own world. He'd offer to take the couch, or the floor. Maybe she'd start to feel bad for him, and once she could hear Cliff snoring she'd invite Ben into bed with her. She'd start off on the edge of the bed, trying to avoid touching him, and trying to convince herself that she'd truly just invited him into bed because she felt bad. But she'd know, as would Ben, that there was more than that.

Ben was snapped out of his daydreams by the sound of Cliff calling for his help. He shook the fuzzy feeling from his brain and went to Cliff

~*~*~*~*~

An hour later, Cliff, Rey, and Ben were finishing up their rounds around the motel, making sure everyone was safe and settled for the night. They'd prepared 7 rooms, one for each group of people they'd brought back. Since then they'd been moving people's supplies into their rooms, and the food into the lobby to be divided up the next day. 

Ben had just finished up checking on the last room, when he decided to go check on Rey in the lobby. 

He opened the door and stepped inside without making a sound. The bell that usually hung above the door to alert Danny of a visitor inside his lobby had been taken down to prevent unwanted noise. 

Rey didn't notice him come in. She was too focused on noting down all the food and supplies people had brought with them. She'd insisted that all the food be kept in one place and distributed equally. She was noting them to make sure nothing would get stolen. Bobby was the only one to protest. Ben thought they were very lucky to have a mostly cooperative group of people. Even with only one difficult person, Bobby wasn't much of a threat. It would make Rey's job much easier.

Ben's stomach knotted as he watched her. He admired her, and wanted to make a good impression. This would be the first time they were alone together.

"Are you okay?" 

Ben was snapped out of his daydream to see that Rey had noticed his presence.

"Yeah, sorry. Just tired," he told her, "How is everything?" 

"In order," she said, "I think I can finally get some sleep."

"That's a good idea," Ben said awkwardly, not sure what to say next. 

Rey smiled at him, "Come on."

Ben wasn't sure what he'd done to deserve the smile, but he was grateful for it. He held the door open for her as she left, and stayed with her while she locked the door behind her. 

When they got into their room Cliff had already crashed in one of the beds and was snoring loudly.

"I'll take the couch," Ben said, eyeing the couch that sat parallel to the beds, and thinking about his daydream from earlier.

"No, I'll take it," Rey protested.

"You've been working hard today and you deserve a good place to sleep." 

"I'm used to it," She explained, "I always take the couch when I'm in motel rooms with strange men."

"You've... you've been in the same motel room with a lot of strange men?" 

Rey smiled up at him, as she made her way over to the couch, "That sounded worse than it was meant to. I just mean that while I was on my trip with my friends they were trying to set me up with the other guy. By sleeping on the couch I knew he couldn't try to sleep next to me. It sounds stupid but it helped the anxiety."

She sat down on the couch and Ben sat down next to her, "I don't think that's stupid. Sounds smart to me."

"I don't mean the sleeping arrangement. I mean the fact that I was scared he was going to try to sleep next to me. He wasn't like that but I was still worried." 

Ben was going to insist on taking the couch, but after hearing her story he decided that her comfort was the most important.

"If that's what makes you comfortable then the couch is all yours," he told her, "But I'm not like that. I don't want you to be anxious while you're staying with us. And you don't have to worry about Cliff either." 

"Thanks. I will take the couch."

"Okay. You can have a few of my pillows and the comforter. I'll be too hot anyways. If you change your mind feel free to wake me up. I won't mind."

Rey smiled at him, "You're sweet, Ben." 

Ben avoided eye contact, knowing he couldn't hide the blush from his face. 

They both settled into bed and Ben hit the lights. The sleeping arrangement hadn’t gone exactly as planned, but Ben felt happier with this result. He was happier knowing that Rey was comfortable, and not guilted into letting him into bed. He felt relieved knowing that she felt safe.

Ben fell asleep, and was tormented by images of his dead friends. All the people he’d failed to save because they’d been too slow on figuring out what was going on, and then too slow on acting on it. One face stood out clearer than the rest: Mindy. 

She’d been his best friend. He could’ve stopped her from jumping out of the car, he could have grabbed her. He hadn’t even given her the respect of killing her undead body. Instead she was still wandering in the darkness, looking for him. Looking for revenge.

When he woke up in a cold sweat, Ben was relieved that the nightmare was over. It took him a minute to realize that he’d been awoken by something other than his own fear. 

The bathroom door was shut and Ben could see the dim light leaking through the crack at the bottom. He looked to his left and saw Cliff laying in the exact same position he’d been in before. When he looked to his right, where Rey should’ve been sleeping on the couch, she was gone. 

Oh well, Ben thought, She just went to use the washroom.

But he laid there for another half an hour, waiting for her to return. She never did. At the half hour mark he saw the light under the crack of the door go dark. Ben looked back at the couch to make sure he hadn’t fallen asleep and missed her, but the couch was still empty. 

He waited a few more minutes just to make sure she wasn’t in her way out. Then he threw the covers off of himself, swung his legs over the side of the bed, and walked towards the door. 

“Rey?” He whispered after knocking gently on the door, “Are you okay?”

“Come in,” a quiet voice on the other side said.

Ben twisted the doorknob and stepped into the dark room. The back of Rey’s head was illuminated by the small nightlight next to the sink. She sat in the bathtub facing away from him, and she twisted around to look at him as he closed the door behind him. 

“Couch too uncomfortable?” Ben asked.

Rey gave a small smile, and Ben realized that her face was wet with tears.

“Are you okay?”

She didn’t reply, only shook her head. 

Ben sat down on the floor next to the tub, facing her, and leaned back against the wall. 

“Do you wanna talk about it?”

Rey sniffed and wiped her cheeks before replying, “I don’t know. I think I’m just overwhelmed.”

“I can imagine,” Ben said, “You’ve been through a lot. We all have.”

“You guys have watched all of your friends die, you have more of a reason to be crying than I do.” 

“That’s not true. I mean, it’s true that we’ve lost people, but not that you don’t have a reason to be upset. You lost all your friends all at once, you watched them die. That’s not nothing.”

Another stream of tears started down Rey’s face and she wiped them away quickly.

“You don’t have to do that,” Ben told her.

“Do what?”

“Stop yourself from crying. You’re allowed to cry. Talk to me about it.”

Rey hesitated for a moment, and then told him, “I miss them. My friends. The people that I left at home too.”

“Your family?”

Rey shook her head, “I don’t have a family. But I knew people at the orphanage. People I was close to.”

“Oh.”

“It’s crazy. Uncar, the guy who ran the orphanage, was a terrible man. He was abusive and he hated all of us, but I’m still worried about him.” 

“He raised you?”

“Yeah.” 

“It’s normal to care about someone who raised you, even if they’re not a good person,” he told her, “My parents were similar. They weren’t bad, but they left me to be raised by a nanny, and then when she quit I was sent to my uncle. I barely saw them. I have no real childhood memories with them. I still love them, but I know that it’s because of them that I struggled so much throughout my life. I know that’s not the same thing. They were neglectful, not abusive. But I am worried about them.”

“Where are they?” Rey asked.

“I don’t even know,” Ben told her, “My mom’s a scientist, I see her on TV sometimes, but I don’t really check in on them. Now I wish I did.”

“We’ve both messed up,” Rey smiled, the tears on her cheeks finally drying. 

“No. Not messed up. Just trying our best and realizing our mistakes.”

“I guess so.”

“How are you feeling now?” Ben asked.

“A bit better,” Rey told him, “Thank you.” 

Ben reached out and found her hand on the edge of the tub. He wrapped his fingers around hers and squeezed. 

“You can talk to me anytime.”

She squeezed back and looked him in the eyes, “thank you.”


	8. Chapter 8

It had been one week since everyone had gathered at the motel. On the first morning when they'd woken up in their motel rooms after gathering a few families the night before, Ben and Cliff had been sent out to find more people who were willing to join their little community. By the evening they'd managed to visit every house in Centerville. Most people had decided to join the group at the motel, but there were a few who'd wanted to stay at their houses, or move out to find their family. Rey, Hank, and Finn had installed new locks and alarm systems in every room except for #3, which had yet to be cleaned out. At the time it had been too fresh a memory for anyone, especially Rey, to go in and deal with. Ben had been hoping that one of the new members would volunteer to clean it out, but there had been no such luck. 

On the second day Rey and Ben had led a group discussion about a wall surrounding the motel. Everyone had been in favour of the idea, and everyone in the group had participated in pitching ideas as well as helping build it up. By the end of the day they'd had a solid base surrounding the entire property, and learned who the hardest workers were. Ben found himself to no longer be jealous of Finn. It was clear that Rey cared for them both, but she was able to confide much more in Ben, and he was happy to see that there were other people around to support her. He realized that all he wanted was for her to feel safe and happy. 

The third day had been when they'd learned who they were unable to trust. Bobby had led a small group of men to intervene with Rey and Ben's morning group discussion. They'd insisted that Rey's plans were wrong, and that the group should be out killing the zombies rather than hiding in a motel. Fortunately, no one had agreed with them. That was the same day they'd finished up the wall. All that had been left to do was to build a door at the front so that cars and people could get in and out without having to worry about zombies. 

On the fourth day Rey had established a watch schedule at their morning discussion. A group made up of volunteers was to spend the day working on their door. Another group, which had been decided by Rey, Ben, and Cliff the night before, were set to keep watch around the motel. They had one person running the lobby, distributing food to people when it was lunch and dinner time, making sure nothing was being stolen, and just keeping organized in general. Two people watched over the front of the wall, which they'd designed to have small platforms at the top so that a few people could climb up and keep watch over what was going on on the other side. Two people also sat watch at the back. They had three shifts per day: 9am-5pm, 5pm-1am, and 1am to 9am. 

By the fifth day everything was falling into place. A group of leaders had been established based on their dedication to keeping everyone safe and their contribution to the community. Though everyone in the community knew that Rey, Ben, and Cliff were the ones in charge. Even though Cliff mostly just backed up what Rey and Ben said, he was well trusted in the community and the older residents preferred him to Ben or Rey. 

There were four people that the they trusted the most. The first was Poe Dameron, who came from just outside of Centerville. He'd arrived on the morning of the first day and had been eager to help ever since. He volunteered to take watch shifts, and when he wasn't he was helping build the wall or assisting other residents. Rey thought he had some brilliant ideas and was exactly the kind of leader the community needed, as he was friendly with absolutely everyone. Though he was one of the few people who also wanted to be outside killing zombies, he was respectful of the pace of the community and acknowledged that killing zombies wasn't of their best interest at the moment. Ben actually found him to be good company.

Finn was another one of their trusted leaders. He'd proven himself right from the start, when Rey and Ben had met him in Hank's store. While him and Hank were their most useful handymen, Finn was a friend of everyone, especially Rey. To her he felt like the older brother she never had. He had a way with words and knew how to stop conflict in it's tracks. 

Rose Tico had also become a good friend of Rey's. She'd been living in Centreville her whole life. Ben knew her well. She'd just finished her schooling to become an electrician, and had been looking for a job up until the Polar Fracking had begun. Rey has found her to be less of a leader and more someone she could trust with any job. She'd turned out to be pretty good with a machete as well.

Lastly was Hux, who was someone that Ben trusted more than Rey did. The two of them had gone to high school together, and Ben swore he could be trusted. To Rey he seemed a little bit off, but as the week went on Rey realized how important he was to the community. He was strong, a good fighter, and was the only one who knew how to keep Bobby's group quiet. He could shut them up with a glare. Unlike Rose and Finn, Rey didn't feel she could confide in him with personal opinions, but she trusted him with ideas and found his opinion on them to be valuable. 

~*~*~*~*~

Rey sat on the platform at the front of the motel, keeping watch over the outside and the inside of the community. There were no zombies in sight, but there rarely were during the day. At night the zombies would walk by, but would never try to get in. Everyone in the motel was doing an excellent job at keeping quiet at night, and they'd yet to encounter a problem with the zombies. Rey was sure the time would come, and that's why she kept the watch schedules so strict. 

To her right, sitting on the platform on the other side of their door was a girl named Kaydel, who Rey didn't know very well. She smiled when she noticed Rey looking over at her.

Rey has laid down some strict rules with her small group of leaders. When people were on watch they were not to leave their post for any reason whatsoever. Whoever was on meal duty would bring them food if they needed it. If the person on watch needed to leave for any reason they'd need to have someone to take over. For that reason, Rey had decided that no two leaders could be on a watch shift at once, especially if the two people were her and Ben. If there was an issue in the community there needed to be people to deal with it, and if all their leaders were on duty then there would be no one to keep everything under control. Since Rey and Ben were the clear leaders it would be a mistake to have them both gone at once. 

Rey sat, staring out over the wall and into the empty streets ahead, and thought about everything that had led up to this point. Thinking about Zoe and the boys. Wondering where she might be right now had this never happened. Rey missed them. She thought Zoe and Rose would have gotten along, Jack and Poe too. A week ago she was on a road trip across America, today she was sitting in a fold up lawn chair on a platform attached to a wall to keep our zombies. Life had seemed so big and important back then, now Rey was guarding all that was her life.

There was another thing that had yet to be explained. The zombies could be explained by the Polar Fracking, but Rey still had no explanation for Zelda's disappearance. She'd been zapped up by a ship that had looked like a classic UFO. If Zelda really were an alien, why had she been on Earth? Could she have had something to do with the Fracking? And if she had looked just like a normal person, then how many other people around them were aliens? 

Rey let out a deep sigh of frustration over all her unanswered questions. 

"You okay?" 

Rey was startled at the sound of the voice coming from the ladder at the edge of the platform. She looked over to see Ben's head poking over the edge as he climbed the ladder up to her.

"Yeah," Rey said, looking back out over the wall into the empty streets, "Just thinking."

"You need some rest," Ben told her as he climbed up onto the platform next to her.

"I'm still on shift."

"Your shift ends in 10 minutes. I came up to see if you wanted me to heat up your lunch."

Rey had taken the daytime shift, and when lunch rolled around at 1pm she'd turned it down. It would be set in her room and saved for later. She wouldn't receive her next meal until her previous one had been eaten. That idea for food organization had been Poe's. It ensured less waste for when people were sick or didn't want to eat during their shift. It wasn't ideal, but it was the only idea they had.

Ben must've noticed that she missed lunch. He worried about her when she missed a meal. Rey wasn't sure why, since she was in good shape and probably didn't need it as much as some of the others, but he always seemed to be worried for one reason or another. 

"Yeah, that would be good. Thanks," Rey smiled, "Is Hux ready to go?"

"He'll be right up," Ben said, he took a stray strand of her hair between his thumb and forefinger and tucked it behind her ear, before climbing back down the ladder. 

~*~*~*~*~

When Rey came down 10 minutes later she made a beeline for her room. It was 5pm and people were buzzing about as they switch shifts and socialized with their friends before dinner at 7. Rey just wanted to rest.

She got to her room and locked the door behind her. The air smelled warm with reheated pasta and it brought Rey comfort. She found Ben laying down on his bed reading a book, which he set down when she came in. He tapped on the bed in the space next to him, and took her food from his bedside table. 

She sat down beside him without a word and took the bowl from his hands.

"So what's wrong?" Ben asked.

"Nothing," Rey replied.

"Really?"

"Really."

Ben sat up and leaned over to her, "I can't help you if you don't tell me."

Rey sighed, "I've just been thinking too much. That shift went by so fast, just cuz I was in my head the whole time."

"What were you thinking about?"

Rey shrugged, "Where we would be if this had never happened."

"That's a tough one to think about," Ben said, "I think about it a lot too." 

"And where would you be?" Rey asked.

"Probably the exact same place I was a month ago."

Rey smiled at that. 

"It's weird," he said, "I miss my old life. I miss Mindy, but I'm also really grateful for some of the things that have happened since then. Not that I'm glad all my friends are gone, I'm just grateful for what I've gained in that loss."

"I get that," Rey said, "And it took me a lot of thinking to figure it out, but I don't think we should feel guilty for finding the good out of a bad situation. What else are we supposed to do? Make ourselves suffer by feeling nothing good ever?"

"That is really insightful," Ben said.

"Thank you," Rey said, stirring her pasta around in her plate with her fork.

"If you don't eat that, I will," Ben told her, snatching the fork from her fingers and stealing a bite of her food.

"Hey!" Rey exclaimed, stealing the fork back, "I was working on it!" 

"Didn't look like it!" Ben said as he laid back down and stretched his arm out behind Rey, "I'm going back to my book and I'm not talking to you again until you've eaten everything."

~*~*~*~*~

By the time curfew came around Rey was feeling much better. Ben had convinced her to spend the evening relaxing, and to stop worrying about the community. He'd taken over her duties for the evening and let her stay in to rest. By the time Ben and Cliff came back at 10pm she was curled up in his bed, asleep with his book in her hands. 

For a moment Ben wasn't sure what to do. He wanted to let her sleep, and he'd take over the couch, but he wasn't sure if she'd be upset with him in the morning for not moving her. 

He gently took the book from her hands, removed the bookmark from his spot and put it in hers before closing the book and setting it on the bedside table. Ben sat down next to her on the bed and ran his fingers gently through her hair. She looked so peaceful in her sleep, so innocent and stress-free. What a 19 year old girl should look like, not like she has the weight of the world on her shoulders. He hated to have to wake her up, but he knew she'd appreciate him asking. 

"Hey," he whispered, continuing to brush her messy hair with his fingers, "Do you wanna stay in bed or do you want me to take you to the couch?"

Rey just groaned in response.

"I can carry you to the couch," Ben offered.

Without opening her eyes, Rey shook her head.

"Okay I'll take the couch," Ben said, mostly to himself.

"Just take the other side," Rey mumbled, not entirely awake.

"The other side of what?"

"The bed. The couch hurts."

Ben looked up at Cliff, who had changed into his night clothes. He shrugged in reply. 

"It probably is," Cliff said.

Ben sighed, stood up, and went to the bathroom to change. He would take the couch. Rey was as good as asleep, and as much as he wanted to curl up next to her he wasn't going to take advantage of her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you guys are appreciating all these deep conversations. I lost someone really close to me recently and that’s part of the inspiration behind it. Anyways, I know I have this story set at 15 chapters long but it’s definitely going to be more than that lmao. Thanks for reading!!


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: graphic violence in this chapter!!

Rey woke up an hour after Ben and Cliff had come in from their duties. She was confused and not sure where she was. The space to move her arms and legs around was unusual and her back wasn't aching like it usually did. 

She propped herself up on her elbows and waited for her eyes to adjust to the dark before looking around the room. Rey was in Ben's bed, but she was alone. She remembered falling asleep there, reading a book that she'd found on his bedside table that she couldn't remember the plot of no matter how hard she tried. It hadn't been her intention to fall asleep, and it wasn't her intention to have Ben take the couch.

Rey was tempted to wake him up and take her spot on the couch back, but she decided to go out for air instead.

She'd been dreaming about Zelda. The day she'd been beamed up by the UFO. Rey wasn't sure why that memory was sticking in her head, like it was bouncing around her mind demanding her attention. That event was far from a concern to Rey at the moment. It was something she'd have to figure out after the zombie problem had been solved. 

Walking around the parking lot, which had turned into the community's clearing and meeting place, Rey distracted herself by going over her list of watchers for the evening.

Hux would be one of the people watching out front. Bobby would be with him. Rey and Ben always stuck the two together if Bobby ever were to work. They didn't trust him, but they weren't going to let him away with having no responsibilities, and Hux knew how to keep him under control. Peavy and Ematt, who Rey didn't know too well, would be watching the back, and Rose was supposed to be watching the Lobby. Rey couldn't see her from where she was standing in the parking lot, but she did see someone else. 

Canady was one of the men that Rey considered part of Bobby's "group". He'd been on Bobby's side from the start, protesting the group's decisions with him at every opportunity. Rey had no trust for him. He was sitting on the small porch in front of room #10, looking down at his hands. That worried Rey.

She decided to go check in on Rose in the lobby. She stepped inside as quietly as possible, grabbing the small bell over top of the door to keep it from ringing out and waking anyone, or attracting any zombies. Once she was inside with the door closed behind her, Rey realized that Rose wasn't anywhere to be found. The small radio they had situated in the lobby for the entertainment of the person on shift was on very quietly, but there was nothing else. 

The hairs on the back of Rey's neck stood up straight as she stared at the little black radio, something was wrong. Something was very wrong. Rose would never leave her post without someone to cover for her. She decided to go back to her room and wake Ben and Cliff. Rey feared that Rose was hurt.

Rey left the lobby in a hurry, no longer caring to keep quiet. She turned to the left and reached for the door handle of room #1, when someone's arms wrapped around her. One grabbed her waist and the other covered her mouth and nose, and she was pulled away from the door.

In a moment of shock Rey could do nothing to fight back. A million thoughts ran through Rey's head. Ben? Cliff? Hux? But none of those men would handle her the way she was being handled. It wasn't a zombie. The zombies barely had any strength, and definitely not the knowledge to keep her mouth covered to keep her from calling for help.

What felt like centuries later Rey came to her senses. She'd only been dragged a few feet away from the door when she started to thrash in the man's arms. She stomped down on the ground, trying to hit the man's feet, her arms flew up and she clawed at the man's hair. Her attacker let out a huff of frustration, as of her struggles were nothing but a minor inconvenience to him. 

In a split second Rey stopped struggling and dropped her dead weight on him. He was taken by surprise and collapsed to the ground on his back with her on top of him. Rey spun around to face her attacker when she was grabbed from behind again. The man laying on the ground was Canady. Rey's mind jumped to Rose. He must've hurt her. Him and whoever was holding her back right now. 

Canady was quick to get back to his feet. Rey swung her elbow over her shoulder in attempt to hit her attacker in the face. She couldn't hit him but she heard frustrated groans and could tell that he was struggling to keep ahold of her. Rey took a deep breath in order to let out a scream, but Canady was faster. 

His fist flew at her face and hit her in the nose. She heard a crack and was instantly overwhelmed with pain, unable to let out a sound. The man who'd been holding her threw her to the ground and her breath escaped her body. She laid face down on the ground fighting through the pain and trying to get back on her feet. A foot jammed into her rib cage and flipped her over onto her back. 

Rey blinked tears out of her eyes and looked up at her attackers. Towering over her was Canady, Bobby, Peavy, and Ematt. But the sight that froze her to the ground was seeing Hux towering over her along with the other men. She realized that he'd been the one who'd grabbed onto her after she'd knocked Canady to the ground.

Still in shock, she called out to him, "Hux, help me!"

But he lifted his foot and slammed it down on her shoulder. Pain shot down her arm and up her neck, and she let out a cry of pain. 

"Shut up!" Bobby told her, crouching down beside her. 

Hux still had his foot planted on her shoulder, preventing her from moving, and Bobby pinned her free arm above her head to prevent her from fighting back. 

"What do you think you're doing," Rey spat at him.

"Ending this," Bobby told her. Rey should've screamed, but she was fixated on hearing the rest of his answer, "Everyone will wake up tomorrow morning and you'll be gone, and they'll never see you again. This community won't be run by a little girl."

Rey noticed that with each second Bobby was inching closer and closer to her face. She had to keep him talking until he was close enough. 

"What did you do to Rose?" Rey asked.

"Not important, but she'll be fine" Bobby said, now mere inches away from her face. She needed him closer. She could tell he was eager to talk over having to fight. 

"What are you gunna do to me?"

"Uh, kill you... probably. But we'll make it last."

That was it. He was close enough. 

Rey shot her head forward and latched her teeth around Bobby's cheek, which he brought close enough for her to reach when he'd been talking to her. He screeched in pain and released his grip on her arm go to try to shake her off of him. She used the opportunity to grab him by his hair and yank him off of her. Hux has also lessened his pressure in surprised and she rolled out from underneath him. 

She shot up to her feet as Bobby continued to cry out in pain on the ground. Rey lashed out with her fist and punched Ematt in the jaw before he could try to stop her. Peavy three a punch in her direction, but she swerved out of the way and tackled him with all her force. He fell to the ground and before Rey could make a run for it Hux was on top of her. 

He grabbed her hair in his fist and pulled her back towards him. She fell into his chest and he locked his arms around her. 

"Open the gate!" Hux demanded.

Someone must have done it, because before she knew it Canady had ahold of her feet and him and Hux were carrying her out of their shelter. She kicked at Canady's chest hard, and could feel him faltering, but he did not let go. Rey knew that as soon as they had the gate closed behind them it would be over for her. They'd built it strong, and sound didn't get through easily. No one would hear her screaming for help. 

She tried to build up enough strength to scream, but the way they were holding her had her out of breath and struggling to keep breathing. They threw her to the ground and she landed on her spine, what little breath she had was stolen from her chest. 

Canady swung a machete down at her as she was catching her breath. She noticed just in time and her arm flew up to protect her head. The machete sliced her skin and hit her bone with a thud. He hadn't swung it hard enough to do any real damage, and Rey remembered what Bobby had said about making it last. The vibrations shook her body to it's core and a scream ripped through her throat that she didn't know she was capable of, but she couldn't feel any pain. She couldn't feel the hot blood running down her arm.

"Shut the fuck up!" Hux cursed. 

Before Canady could pull the machete from her arm, adrenaline shot through Rey and she grabbed the weapon by the blade - she still couldn't feel a thing - and rolled her whole body away from Canady. He lost his grip on the machete and suddenly it was hers.

Rey pulled the weapon from her arm and got to her feet. Her head was spinning, but she felt like she'd never been thinking clearer in her life. With her I damaged hand she took the machete by the handle and swung it at Canady with all her force. It slashed down his face and he cried out in pain, stumbling backwards.

That's when Rey noticed the shotgun in Hux's hands. Before she could think of what she was doing, she threw the machete down on on the barrel of the gun and it was facing the ground when the shot went off. It didn't touch her, but her ears still rang with the intensity of the sound, and the machete fell from her hands.

She threw her fist at Hux's face and felt his nose crack under her knuckles. When he was distracted by the pain Rey grabbed the machete from the ground, and kicked him in the chest. 

"Rey!" She instantly recognized the sound of Ben's voice. 

He stood in front of her, holding her by the shoulders, "Are you okay?"

"Yeah," she replied. 

Ben turned viciously on Hux, who was still lying on the ground. 

"Ben, we have to get inside before we attract a heard," Rey told him, her voice scratched in her throat. Her scream had seemed to turn her throat into sandpaper. 

Without looking back at her, Ben reached down and grabbed Hux by his hair. He dragged Hux by the hair back into the parking lot, and Rey limped behind him. The doors were quickly closed behind them and Rey was too exhausted to figure out who it was. Too exhausted to figure out where Bobby and Ematt and Peavy and Bobby had gone. 

She could barely process anything that was going on around her, her head was spinning and her vision blurring. She only had the energy to focus on Ben and Hux in front of her. She couldn't even understand how she was still standing.

"What the fuck did you do?" Ben screamed at Hux. 

"I tried to fix this community," he said, blood pouring out of his nose from when Rey had punched him. 

Ben lunged at him, and Rey was convinced that he was going to kill Hux. He grabbed the man's red hair and slammed his head into the ground, once, twice, three times. She almost wanted to let him die, but she couldn't let Ben do it. She wish she could've been happy to watch the red headed traitor die, but her injuries were catching up to her and she could feel them overwhelming her.

"Ben, stop!" 

Ben let him go and turned violently around to face Rey, and she flinched, "He tried to kill you, Rey! He deserves to die!"

"Ben, please!" Her voice was growing more slurred and her vision was beginning to grow dark around the edges. "I-I need help." 

Rey's legs buckled from underneath her and everything went black.

~*~*~*~*~

5 minutes earlier...

Ben was awoken by a sudden, painful scream. He jolted to his feet before he even realized what was going on, and Cliff had woken up to the sound as well.

Without thinking about what he was doing, Ben grabbed the axe from their weapons box from the back corner of their room and ran outside without bothering to close the door behind him.

People were beginning to poke their heads out of their rooms to see what the noise had been, and Ben noticed that it was still the middle of the night, the sun hadn't even touched the sky yet. Something was very wrong.

"Get the other leaders and stay inside," Ben demanded to the people staring over at him. 

The further out into the parking lot he walked the more his eyes adjusted. There were people strewn about the lot, and the big door that kept them all safe was opened just enough for a few people to get through. Ben spotted Bobby laying on the ground cupping his cheek and crying out in pain. He saw Ematt get to his feet and Peavy approach him. 

"What's going on?" Ben asked.

Ematt and Peavy exchanged a fearful glance, and then Peavy lunged at Ben. He hadn't been expecting it, but Ben was so solid that Peavy's weight had barely made him flinch, and he was instantly thrown to the ground. Before Ematt could react Ben through a punch at him that he could instantly tell had shattered his teeth, and he flew to the ground like he'd just been hit by a car. 

Ben grabbed Peavy by the collar of his shirt and whispered into his ear, "If you pull that shit one more time you'll find yourself looking just like Toothless over there." Then shoved him back into the ground. 

That's when the gunshot caught Ben's attention, and he saw Canady come stumbling in from the darkness of the streets beyond their walls. He was bleeding heavily from a scar on his face and collapsed onto the ground in front of Ben. He took one look at the man, raised his axe, and stepped into the darkness. 

Ben watched just as Rey punched Hux in the face, picked up the machete, then kicked him down to the ground. His heart stopped in his chest. What was Rey doing? Had she shot Hux?

But then he noticed that the long red glove on her arm was no glove at all, but blood pouring from an unseen wound, running down her fingers, and dripping to the ground. 

"Rey!" He cried out and ran to her, dropping the axe to the ground. He stood in front of her and held her by the shoulders as gently as he could. Her nose was clearly broken, and Ben knew that Rey wouldn't have started this fight on her own.

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah," Rey replied, her voice sore and empty, and her eyes looking at him lifelessly. This had been Hux's fault. He didn't know what had happened in full, but he knew that Hux was responsible, and rage boiled in his blood.

Ben whipped around to see Hux still on the ground, looking up at Ben with terrified eyes. 

"Ben, we have to get inside before we attract a heard," Rey barely whispered in her same empty voice. 

He was too angry to look back and reassure Rey that if any zombies set foot near them at that moment then he would rip their heads off with his bare hands, so he obliged.

He grabbed Hux by the red hair on top of his head and dragged him back inside. He saw Poe, standing by the doors in shock, and signalled at him to shut them.

Ben was seeing red. His face and fists were hot with rage. It was taking everything in his power not to beat Hux to a pulp right then and there. He wanted to strangle him, and to beak his neck, and to punch him until he couldn't make out Hux's face through the blood and broken bones and bruises. He would kill Hux, and after he was done he'd kill Bobby and the others. Ben killing Bobby was long overdue.

So much of his rage came from the fact alone that it was Hux who was responsible. One of his best friends had tried to kill Rey. It was no secret to anyone that Rey was the most important person in his life. He might not say it, but it was obvious in the way he dropped everything to help her. People had confronted him on it and he'd brushed them off. But Hux had hurt her anyways. He had made her scream so loud that it had woken up the entire community and made her voice so sore and raspy. He'd made her bleed. He'd broken her nose. Ben was going to do the same to him.

Ben threw Hux to the ground and screamed at him, "What the fuck did you do?"

"I tried to fix this community," he said, no longer afraid, but confident in his choice. Ready to pay the price for it. 

Ben snapped at the taunting in Hux's eyes. He grabbed Hux by the hair and slammed his head into the hard concrete. Ben wasn't sure if it was the ground or Hux's skull that made a satisfying crunching noise, but he lifted the smaller man and slammed him back down into the pavement. He slammed him down a third time and relished in every movement, every sound. 

"Ben, stop!" Rey's broken voice called from behind him. 

Ben turned to her more aggressively than he'd intended, and felt a pang of guilt when he saw her flinch at his movement. 

"He tried to kill you, Rey! He deserves to die!" He yelled in the softest tone that his voice would allow, though it still came out furious. 

She stood there looking like she was going to pass out, and at the rate she was bleeding Ben was surprised that she hadn't already. But she was still standing. Her eyes began to flutter shut.

"B-Ben," she struggled to say. His heart leapt in his chest as he realized that she wasn't going to last much longer.

"Please!" Her voice came out as a painful hiss, "I-I need help." 

Her "help" was barely audible and her legs immediately collapsed beneath her. Ben ran to her and caught her before she could hit the ground. He lowered her down gently and held her in his lap.

"She needs help!" His voice cracked embarrassingly, but he couldn't focus on that. 

He looked down at her crooked nose and bloody, bruised face. He took her damaged arm in his and cradled it up against her body to keep it away from the ground and from infection. Ben could feel his heart rate increasing with fear and panic rather than rage. He felt tears welling up behind his eyes and fought his urge to let them spill as he looked over the wound on her arm.

"Rey," his voice came out as a whine. 

He looked over her arm. He didn't know what had caused it, but he could see the cut stretch from her elbow, and end near her wrist. There was so much blood that he couldn't get a good look at the wound. It was getting everywhere, and he was soon covered in her blood. 

His panic rose up in his chest and the tears escaped his eyes and dripped down his cheeks, landing in her blood matted hair and face. His chest started to hurt, and there was immense pressure, he almost thought he was dying. His breath got caught in his throat and he couldn't breathe properly, he felt pressure along his shoulders that could only be relieved by clenching and unclenching his fists around her loose clothes. The tears couldn't be stopped. He was going to die and all that mattered to him was that in the meantime he kept Rey alive.

Someone grabbed his shoulder and he looked up to see Cliff. The older man crouched down beside him, and Ben could tell that he was talking to him, but couldn't make out the words. Every second he wasn't looking at Rey worsened the pain in his chest. 

"She needs help," he know he spoke the words but he didn't hear himself say them. 

Another person came up to him on his other side. A girl that looked like Rose, but wasn't Rose. 

"Ben!" Her voice came through clouded, but he could hear her, "Ben, you're having a panic attack. You need to pace your breathing."

"No!" He yelled at the girl, "I'm not doing shit until I know that she's okay!"

"I am going to help her," the girl said, "I'm a doctor. But I need your help and for you to be able to help me you need to breathe."

Ben looked back down at Rey, trying to deepen his breathing. For her if no one else. The rage began to subside, the pain lessened, and he let his fists relax.

"Good, good," the girl encouraged, "You're doing really well. Can you stand up?"

Ben nodded. His world had stopped spinning and he could feel his logical thoughts returning. His tears slowed as he focused on a way to help her. 

"What do you need me to do?" Ben asked. 

"I need you to carry her to room #3."

"Room #3?"

"Yes," the girl said, "don't think about it. That's just the best place I can treat her."

Ben nodded, and repositioned Rey in his arms so that he was holding her bridal style. Cliff helped him get up to his feet, and he followed the girl to room #3. Cliff quickly unlocked the door for her, and the girl rushed inside and stripped the comforter off of the nearest bed.

"Put her here," the girl instructed and Ben obeyed. "Okay, I need to help her now. You can help me or you can go get my sister."

"Rose?"

"Yes."

"Well I'm not going anywhere until I know Rey is okay," Ben told her.

"I'll find Rose," Cliff said and ran off.

"What do you need me to do?" Ben asked. 

"Get some towels from the bathroom and get them wet, then bring them back to me."

Ben obeyed. He found ever towel in the room, and soaked them all before bringing them back to the woman.

"Okay, clean the blood off of her face and I'll work on her arm. I need you to stay away from her arm because it will become infected if not treated properly. Do you understand?"

"Yes, Miss."

"I'm Paige," the girl told her.

"Ben."

"I know."

~*~*~*~*~

Ben wasn't sure how much time had passed since he started helping Paige. Everything had seemed to go by so quickly. He had completely forgotten about Hux, until Cliff came in to inform him that him, Finn, and Poe would be handling the punishment of the men in the meantime. Rose had shown up quickly. She'd offered some quick apology and explanation, and Ben wasn't quite sure what it was for because he couldn't focus on anything other than Paige's instructions. 

It took hours to stop Rey's arm from bleeding, and Paige had had Ben keep pressure on the wound while her and Rose reset Rey's nose and patched up her facial injuries. They declared that her ribs were bruised and her shoulder popped out of it's socket, and there was a minor fracture. They made quick work of resetting it, but they told him that it would be sore for her for days. Ben managed to keep himself calm while hearing about all the injuries Hux had given her, but knew that he'd snap later on when he was alone. 

Eventually the bleeding on her arm slowed down and Rose and Paige were able to treat it appropriately. 

After they'd cleaned up her arm Rose insisted that he go out and get some air. He was hesitant, but then Paige requested that he bring them all some food, and he obliged. He needed the two girls to be in top shape to care for Rey. He felt that might be a bit selfish, but he was beyond the point of caring. 

When he got outside it seemed like the whole community stopped their conversations and turned to look at him. He tried to ignore the hush as he headed over to the lobby to grab food and check the time. Inside Cliff was sitting at the desk, preparing three plates of food.

"Oh, Ben," Cliff smiled up at him. Ben noticed the dark circled under his eyes and the way he moved slowly from exhaustion, "I was about to bring these to you and the girls."

"And they just sent me out for food," Ben smiled.

"I'm surprised you left."

"They're super focused right now and I don't want to get in the way. What time is it, by the way?"

"3pm. It's been about 12 hours."

"Jesus Christ. It feels like it's been about three."

"How are you feeling?" Cliff asked, "You scared me earlier, I've never seen you that upset."

"Surprisingly okay. I thought she was going to die. I thought I was going to die."

"Do you love her?"

Ben was taken aback by the out-of-nowhereness of that question, and quickly changed the subject.

"Where's Hux?" Ben asked, Cliff seemed respectful of his avoidance.

"Still unconscious. We have him locked up with the other men in Bobby's room, and moved all Bobby's roommates to other rooms. Finn, Poe, and a bunch of other guys are keeping watch.”

"Sorry I nearly killed him."

"No you're not," Cliff laughed.

Ben returned the laugh, "you're right I'm not." Laughing felt both like a betrayal of Rey, and a huge relief. He thought back to their conversation from the day before, and decided to let himself let out a fit of laughter.

After he'd settled down he asked, "What are we going to do with him?"

"Well he's not being treated until we know Rey is okay. We need all of our focus on her right now. I could care less if he dies in the meantime. But once she's okay and the girls have had some rest they'll have to look after Hux and Canady too. It's only fair."

"Neither of them deserve fair."

"I'll bring the food to the girls. You need to put some real clothes on."

Ben looked down at his bloodstained clothes and only then realized that he was still in his sleep clothes. His plain white T-shirt was nearly completely red, and he noticed that all he had on his bottom half were his sleep shorts. Those too were soaked in blood. He was momentarily embarrassed. He'd thought people were staring at him because of his earlier breakdown, but now he wondered if it mostly had to do with the fact that their beloved police officer was wandering around in his blood soaked underwear. 

Cliff went off with the tray of food for the girls, and Ben went to his room to get changed. Everything was exactly as it had been left in the morning. The covers thrown off of the couch and onto the floor when he'd been awoken by Rey's scream. He tried not to linger on the thought. 

He changed quickly into his police uniform, not wanting to waste any time away from Rey. When he opened the door to return to room #3, he came face to face with Cliff. 

"She's awake."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The story is finally getting interesting! I’ve had this planned right from the beginning and I’m so glad I’m finally getting to the more interesting parts. You can find me on Twitter @LucilleFuhrArt where I’m practicing my Reylo fan art, and I’ll probably have a few from this fic.


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m sorry I made Bobby kind of a dick lmao. He’s a really decent character in the movie (just a little weird) but he seemed like he’d be the most likely to get upset at Rey telling him what to do, so I made a character sacrifice.  
> I hope you enjoy this chapter!! Please comment what you like!

Rey's sleep was blissful and painless. Her dreams brought flashes of images: Zelda, the police car, zombies, the radio in the lobby, the scientist on the tv, the car radio, the images of the earth off it's axis from the tv. Her sleep felt like minutes before she woke up.

The first person she saw was Rose, and it took her a moment to process that she's woken up. It took her a moment to notice that Rose's sister, Paige, was also there, and that they're doing something to her arm. She tries to pull away, and that's when they noticed she's woken up.

"Rey!" Rose gasped.

"Are you okay?" Rey's voice came out a croak.

"I'm so sorry, Rey. I should've been there to help you. Hux told me he'd cover my shift because I felt so sick."

"It's okay," Rey struggled to say.

"Rose," Paige interrupted, “Let Rey rest her vocal cords. Rey, just nod or shake your head for now, okay?"

Rey nodded.

"How are you feeling?"

Rey shrugged and instantly regretted it. Pain shot through her arm and shoulder and she let out a whine of pain. 

"Your shoulder was dislocated and fractured. Try not to move."

Rey nodded.

"Your arm is badly hurt. We'd hoped you'd sleep through the stitching process but we are just about to start. Are you okay with us numbing your arm?"

Rey nodded again. A question burned at the back of her mind, but Rose got to it before she could ask.

"Ben just went to get food," Rose said. Rey nodded in response. 

As if on cue, the door opened, but Ben was not the one to step inside. It was Cliff, carrying three plates of food. Rey caught his eye and he smiled in surprise.

"Good morning, peanut," Cliff said, and Rey was surprised at the sudden use of the strange nickname. 

"Where's Ben?" Rose asked, once again reading Rey's mind.

"I made him go get changed. He was covered in... well you know." 

"You should go get him," Rose said, "We need to give her stitches and she could use a distraction."

Rey nodded in agreement.

Cliff set the food down and left the room. Seconds later Ben was inside, crouched down beside Rey's bed and squeezing her hand. Questions shot out of his mouth faster than she could keep up with.

"Ben," she said in her croaky voice.

He smiled, "sorry. I'm just glad you're okay." He paused for a moment, "I was so scared."

"I'm okay."

"Rey you're just going to prolong your recovery if you keep talking," Paige told her.

Rey made a C shape with her good hand and held it up to her mouth as if she was drinking from a cup.

"Water?" Ben asked, already on his feet.

Rey nodded, and he was back with a glass of water quicker than she'd ever seen him move in her life. She smiled.

"Help?" He asked. She nodded again. 

He put one hand behind her head to help her upright without having to move her entire body and firing up her injuries again. He held the glass to her lips and let her slip slowly. It was as refreshing as water quenching a fire. 

When she was finished he set the water aside, but kept his hand under her head and rubbed her scalp gently. It was relaxing and she was grateful for the comfort. 

Rose and Paige warned that they were about to freeze her arm, so Ben decided to start explaining what was going on as a distraction. 

"We've been in here for 12 hours, trying to help you," he said, "you kicked those guys' ass. Canady's face is destroyed!"

Rey fought back a laugh but couldn't hold back the smile he brought her.

"I can't believe how brave you are," Ben said, moving his hand out from under her head to move her stray hairs out of her eyes, and to run his fingers through her messy hair, "I can't believe how strong you are. I nearly died just because I was afraid on your behalf. And now you're here as calm as ever, like nothing even happened to you."

Rey tilted her head in confusion when he mentioned nearly dying. 

"I had a panic attack," Ben told her, "So I guess I didn't nearly die but it sure felt like it. Paige helped me."

Ben kept on talking to distract her. About the day so far. Stories about Paige and Rose's bravery in helping her. Complimenting her strength. For what felt like hours before Paige finally said, "you're done."

Rey looked down at her arm to see the scar covered with angry black stitches that looked like little bugs crawling up her arm. She didn't like it, but she couldn't deny that they'd done an excellent job. 

"We have to do your hand too," Paige said, "but it's not as urgent. We have it bandaged up really good right now. Would you rather wait till tomorrow and get some rest?"

Rey nodded.

"You guys deserve some rest," Ben told them, "you've been working hard today."

"Thank you, Ben," Rose said.

"Should we go back to our room?" Ben asked.

"No, actually," Paige explained, "I want you to stay here and to stay still. We can move you over to the other bed so you're not laying in your own blood but if you want covers they're only on your legs and you can't move an inch except for shaking your head."

Rey nodded her head in agreement.

"Okay so we've got to move you. This is probably going to hurt."

Rey nodded again.

Ben lifted her up and quickly set her down on the second bed. After she was settled Rose and Paige left for the evening, and made Ben promise he'd stay with Rey until the morning. Though Rey was certain he'd be here the whole time anyways.

"I'll just sleep on the couch," he told her. He was asleep before his head hit the pillow, and Rey followed shortly after.

~*~*~*~*~

The next morning, after Rey's second set of stitches, Paige explained to her that she'd be allowed to get up and walk around as long as someone is always with her to make sure she doesn't strain herself. Rey didn't even need to ask for volunteers. Ben was with her whether she liked it or not. 

She was encouraged to keep speaking to a minimum, but there would be no way to avoid speaking altogether. Especially after Cliff came into the room and informed the two of them that they were going to have a meeting with all of the leaders in the lobby to discuss what was going to happen with the men who'd attacked Rey. 

She was nervous, but wouldn't let it show. 

"You need to change into clean clothes," Ben brought up the subject she'd been avoiding since she'd woken up. She knew it would hurt and was trying to avoid the situation at all costs. But she couldn't very well go out into the community looking like a corpse. 

"We can just put you in something baggy and comfy," Ben told her, "everyone knows what happened, no one will criticize you for wearing sleep clothes, just as long as they're not bloody." 

Rey nodded in agreement.

He went back to their room and got her some fresh clothes. At some point while he was gone Rey realized that the only way for her to get changed would have to be with his help. Rose and Paige were off stitching up the men, and couldn't come over to help. Ben was the person she was closest to in the world, but she wasn't ready to have him see her with so little clothes on. It didn't help that Paige had strictly told her no bras would be allowed until her bruised ribs had healed. Her stomach knotted itself when he came back with one of his T-shirt's and a pair of her comfy shorts.

"I wasn't sure if your shirts would be too tight so I just brought my own."

"Thank you," Rey said. "I'm gunna need some help."

"Okay, just tell me what I need to do."

Rey looked down at her shirt, it wasn't too snug, but tight enough that it would hurt to get her arm out. Ben noticed the concern on her face.

"How much do you need that shirt?" He asked.

"Not that much, I guess," Rey replied.

Ben took the scissors that Rose and Paige had left behind, "We can just cut it off, after we clean it we can just use it as a rag or something."

"Okay," Rey agreed, allowing Ben to step closer with the scissors and let him start cutting from the bottom, and up her right side - the side of her stitched arm and fractured shoulder. He cut slowly, and the metal was cold against her skin as it slowly dragged up, barely touching her. He cut with his right hand, and had his left wrapped around her waist to keep her steady. They were two contrasting feelings, the cold of the scissors, and the burning heat of Ben's hand on her body. 

He cut all the way up to the top, and the fabric fell open to reveal her bra. Rey's cheeks went red but Ben didn't glance in the direction of her chest for even a second. He moved to her sleeve and cut it, freeing her damaged arm. He then moved over to her other sleeve and cut that one off too. Once he was done that he kept his eyes over her, like he was looking past her at something behind. Rey shook the shirt off and it fell to the floor.

"I'm not too eager to get rid of the bra," Rey said quietly, "I only have two."

"Can you leave it on," Ben asked, still looking past her. 

"Rose doesn't want me wearing one because of my ribs," Rey told him, "I don't know why she didn't just cut it off while she was treating me. It would've saved us some trouble."

"Yeah," Ben said. Rey looked up at him just in time to catch the blush starting in his face.

"I can get it," Rey said and she went to reach for the clasp on her back before instantly realizing that she couldn't bend her bad arm that way and it was a terrible idea. Ben's hands - and eyes - were back on her instantly. 

"Don't hurt yourself," he said, cupping her face in one hand and touching her bad arm delicately with the other. "I'll do it. What do you need me to do."

"The clasp on the back," Rey explained, turning his back to him, "You know how it works?"

"Yeah, of course," he said before he realized what he was saying, "Um, that came out wrong."

Rey laughed, "it's okay."

"As soon as I un-clip it, just stay there and I'll get the shirt," he told her.

"Okay."

He un-clipped her with ease and helped her inch the straps down her arms and tossed it to the floor when he was done. Rey could feel the heat of his chest so close to her back and it spread all over her body. She hoped he didn't notice.

He quickly grabbed the dark grey shirt and gently placed it over her head until the whole thing was over her body, but her arms weren't yet in the holes. He placed his hands gently on her hips and guided her as he backed up and sat down on her bed, and then nudged her to turn around to face him. 

"This is probably going to hurt," he said.

"I know."

Slowly he helped her get her arms through the holes. Rey ground her teeth to prevent from crying out, but she couldn't keep the look of pain off of her face, and Ben felt extreme guilt. What felt like hours later, it was over. 

"You're good to go," Ben smiled up at her. 

"Thank you," Rey said quietly, her eyes avoiding his.

~*~*~*~*~

All of the community's leaders: Cliff, Finn, and Poe, along with Ben and Rey, met up in the lobby 10 minutes later. 

When Ben and Rey had left the room they'd received looks of shock and horror. A few people offered to help her get to the lobby, but it was mostly Rey's upper half that was injured so she could walk fine. Ben kept a hand on the small of her back to steady her, but also out of fear that if he were to let her go then someone would attack her again. It was a ridiculous thought.

When they arrived, all the others were already in the room.

"Hey, peanut," Cliff said.

"Again with the weird nicknames, Cliff?" Rey commented.

"I think it's cute," Finn commented, "You are henceforth known as Rey the Peanut."

"Shut up!" Rey laughed.

"More like a Walnut," Poe added, "Cuz you're so hard to crack."

"I'm not sure if I should be offended," Rey added with a smile.

"Anyways,'' Poe said, changing the subject, "We have to decide what to do with the guys. Rose and Paige will be joining us when she'd done to let us know what they learned from the injuries. We think we've got all the information but we can't be too careful. If they're planning something else like this we have to know."

"What do we know so far?" Ben asked, pulling up a chair for Rey. She sat down gratefully, and he stayed stuck to her side.

"It was all planned," Finn started, "We all wondered how Hux managed to keep them under control, it's cuz he was their guy on the inside. Hux kept volunteering for the night shift with their whole 'team' in hopes that at some point Rey would come out at night. Fucking ridiculous. But they slipped a melatonin into Rey's lunch when she refused it so that when she got off shift she would eat it and fall asleep right away. That way she'd be up during the night. They did something to Rose's food so that she'd be willing to leave her shift. That's why she felt sick. As far as I'm aware they have no future plans."

"Why did they do it?" Ben asked.

"Basically they didn't like being bossed around by a young woman," Poe explained.

Rey looked down at her hands knotted together in her lap.

"Rey," Poe said, crouching down in front of her chair, "It's not your fault. Real men don't plan a murder because they disagree with a woman. You're the smartest person in this community and you don't need to pretend like you're not for a group of idiots."

"Thanks, Poe."

"Anytime, peanut," he said, ruffling her hair as he stood back up.

"So what are we going to do with them?" Cliff asked.

"We have some ideas but we wanted Rey to be here to help make the decision. You're the one affected by it the most so the priority is that you feel safe."

"How bout I fucking kill them, how about that?" Ben said. 

"Ben!" Rey exclaimed, looking up at him.

"If they pull anymore shit like that I will and you can tell me not to but I will. It's already taking everything I have not to go in there right this second and break all of their necks."

"And no one will blame you for killing them if they do it again," Poe said, "But not until then. And if the time comes, which it won't, they will be executed properly and not in front of the whole community."

"Fine," Ben huffed.

"What are your options for punishment?" Rey asked.

"Execution was one," Finn started, "But you clearly don't want that option."

"I don't."

"We don't have a prison, but we could use their room as such and have someone guarding it."

"Which would be a waste of manpower," Ben chimed in.

"We could let them continue to live here, and just keep them from ever being in the same place at once."

"More wasting manpower."

"Or we could send them into exile."

"Better."

"I think there's only one valid option," Rey said.

"Yeah," Finn added, "Exile."

"We can send them out tonight," Poe suggested.

"No," Rey said, "They need time to heal first."

"Rey-" Ben began to object.

"No," She interrupted, "I won't budge on that. We can shelter them for a day or two while they heal and then let them go."

"The more they're healed the more likely they are to fight us again," Ben argued.

"And the less healed they are the more likely they are to die out there. That would be on us Ben!" Rey shot back.

"Who cares! Are you forgetting that they tried to kill you?"

Rey stood up suddenly from her chair, "Do not talk down to me, Ben Solo. Are you forgetting that I'm the one they tried to kill. Not you."

Ben took a step back and his face softened as he realized that he'd upset Rey. 

"We stitch them up, give them a day or two to heal, and then send them off. We can spare the manpower for two days, can we not?"

"We can," Poe agreed, "That's what we'll do."

Rey sighed, "thank you for giving me an opinion on this. Do you mind if I speak with Ben alone?"

Everyone nodded and quickly cleared the lobby except for Ben and Rey.

"I'm sorry."

"You don't have to treat me like I'm a little girl," Rey said, "I'm not a child."

"I know. I'm sorry. I'm just trying to look out for you."

"I don't need you to look out for me," Rey said as she stormed out of the lobby as best she could with her injuries, and slammed the door behind her. 

Guilt sat heavy in Ben's chest. 

~*~*~*~*~

"Finn."

"Hey, peanut. What's up?"

"Have you ever built a radio before?"

"A radio?"

"Like a police radio. That you can talk through."

"Oh. I haven't, but my dad or Rose might know how."

"Do you think we could build one?"

"We can definitely try. Why do you want to do that? I'm sure we can find one in this town somewhere."

"I need a bigger one. I want to be able to communicate a further distance away."

"Am I allowed to ask why?"

"I'll explain it when I have a better idea of it myself."

"Okay."


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: threat of sexual assault, threat of violence

1 day later... 

"Okay, so they'll probably say some taunting things but just keep your cool and act like you're unaffected by it. You too, Ben. I'm here for you if you need to talk about it afterwards, but in the meantime don't let their words touch you," Finn explained as they stood outside the door to Hux and the other men's room/hospital/prison cell. 

It had been Rey's idea, and everyone agreed wholeheartedly, to tell the men that they would be sent into exile the next evening after they'd had time to recover. They would no longer be allowed to have any of the community's food or weapons for the remainder of their time, and they would not be allowed to leave any earlier or later than planned. 

Ben and Finn were to come in with her while she made the announcement. Ben because it would take knocking him unconscious to let her go into their room without him, and Finn because he pissed the men off less than Poe did. 

Rey had been cold to Ben the day before, after all he'd suggested was killing the men, but she couldn't stay mad at him for long. Ben's reasoning was understandable, and overall he was just trying to look out for her. That night before bed she'd told him she was sorry for lashing out at him, and he'd apologized too.

"You ready?" Ben snapped her out of her train of thought by putting a gentle hand on her back.

"Yeah," Rey replied, "Let's go."

Finn and Ben were the first two to step into the room and make sure all of the men were away from the door and settled. Rey followed in shortly after, and was surprised that they had no reaction to her. She had been expecting some rude comments, and the lack thereof was a pleasant surprise. 

"Good morning," Rey said as she sat herself down on a chair at the front of the room that Finn had brought in for her. 

The whole room smelled like blood and sweat. All the curtains were drawn and the air was heavy. It truly did feel like a big cell. Rey decided she wanted to finish this discussion as quickly as possible so she wouldn't have to stay in the room for much longer.

"I think you know why I'm here," she said.

"Yeah," Bobby said, "Because we tried to make this community a better place and now you're pissed about it."

"Shut the fuck up, hobbit face," Ben spat at the smaller man.

"Ben, please," Rey said, locking her eyes on him until he'd settled. "This will be your last night here. Tomorrow at 4pm we will be sending you into exile. You have time to rest and prepare yourselves before then, but you will not be allowed to leave this room. You will not take any weapons or food with you either. We're letting you go long before sunset so that you have time to find food and shelter before night falls and the zombies come out."

"Why are you doing this?" Hux asked from the back corner of the room. His face was still mangled and broken. "Why not just kill us?"

"Because I'm not like you," Rey said, "I don't try to kill people I disagree with."

"So is that everything?" Another asked.

"Pretty much, yeah."

"Good, because we have something to say to you," Bobby said, "We will not be leaving centreville, and if we catch you beyond these walls we will kill you. If you set one foot outside of this motel, consider yourself already dead," Bobby stood up and began to walk towards her as he spoke, and Rey's heart pounded in fear and she tried not to let it show, "If you leave that gate open we will come in here and find you. When we get our hands on you you'll wish we'd killed you the first time around. We'll feed you piece by piece to the zombies, we'll use you as our personal punching bag, we'll take turns using you because that's all you're fucking good for."

At that, Ben snapped. 

In the blink of an eye Bobby was thrown across the room and into the wall. Before Rey could process what was happening Finn was grabbing her by the shirt and pulling her out of the room. 

Finn wrapped his arms around her and squeezed once they were outside with the door slammed and locked behind them. Rey let her tears fall and buried her face into his shoulder. She knew she shouldn't be bothered by them, but the hate in Bobby's words dug under her skin and shook her bones. She didn't understand what she'd done to have anyone hate her to that level.

"It's okay," Finn comforted, "You're okay. We won't let them hurt you I promise." 

At Finn's comforting words Rey let everything spill. All the stress and fear from the days before, the grief of losing her friends, and the confusion of her emotions over the past week turned to her tears as she sobbed against Finn's shoulder. 

She felt Poe come up beside her and wrap his arms around the two of them and felt more at home than she ever had in her life. How had she found the best people through the most horrible circumstances?

Rey didn't even notice the sound of shouting and crashing until it was gone, and Ben stepped out of the room with blood on his knuckles.

"Rey?" He asked, looking at her with empathy and love.

She separated herself from Finn and Poe and Ben swooped in for a tight hug. Tight enough that it hurt her broken body, but she didn't care. 

"I'm so sorry," he whispered.

"It's not your fault," Rey replied, "What happened after I left?"

Ben separated from the hug and kneeled down in front of Rey. He held her face in one hand and her good hand in the other.

"I broke his face," Ben told her, "Sorry."

Rey laughed at his honesty. In that moment she couldn't have cared less if he'd killed them all. 

"I won't let them touch you, peanut," he said to her, "I'll die before they can breathe in your direction ever again. Okay? I promise."

"Okay."

~*~*~*~*~

The next day, at 4pm...

Rey hadn't been anywhere near Bobby's room since the events of the day before, but now she stood at the doors of their barrier as she waited for the men to be brought to her.

They'd made the announcement of the men's exile the evening before. The community would be welcome to be present as long as they could stay on guard, or were encouraged to stay inside if they didn't want to be involved in any of the commotion. It wasn't a secret that the five men were a threat to the safety of the community.

By 4pm only a handful of people were still outside. A few lingered in the back by their rooms.

The men were walked out of their room one by one. First Bobby, with Finn. That was the first time Rey noticed the huge, mouth-shaped scar she'd left on Bobby's cheek from when she'd bitten him. She felt a tiny bit of pride. Second out was Hux, guided by Poe. Then Canady and Ben. So on until all men were in front of the door facing Rey. 

"Do you have any last words before you leave?" Rey asked, "Please keep in mind that if you say anything to upset anyone here then I will give Ben permission to punch you in the face to shut you up."

"Just remember what I said," Bobby said, locking his eyes on Rey's and holding her there. His eyes were full of rage, she she had to pull herself out of his gaze to continue her job.

"Then it's time for you to go," Rey continued, "Kaydel, Jessika, could you please open the doors?"

The doors began to creak open behind Rey. Just enough for a few people to file through before stopping. She stepped aside to let the men be escorted out. Once they were all out, Rey stepped away from the doors. They were gone for a few seconds before Ben, Finn, Poe, and the other escorts returned and Kaydel and Jessika closed the door behind them.

Ben made a beeline for where Rey was standing. 

"Are you okay?" He asked.

"Better now that they're gone," Rey replied.

~*~*~*~*~

"You could probably return to room #1 tomorrow night," Paige suggested, as she looked over Rey's wounds, "I don't suggest you sleep on the couch, that could just aggravate your wounds."

"Why would that be any different than staying here?" Rey asked.

"Just so we can open up this room for other people," Paige suggested, "We have all our medical stuff in here now, we might as well treat it like a medical room." 

"Not a bad plan."

"So are you good to clear out for tomorrow?" Paige asked, "We'll start bleaching out... everything."

"Okay," Rey agreed, "If you need help with that let me know. I still don't trust myself to go back to my duties so I have lots of free time." 

"Thanks. Sleep well."

"Thanks, Paige," Rey said as she left the room.

Seconds later Ben entered the room.

"Everything okay out there?" 

"Yeah," Ben replied, "We have extra people on watch tonight."

"I thought you'd want to be out there keeping watch?"

"I figured you'd rather have me here."

"Oh," Rey said, "I mean if you really want to be out there then go for it. I'll be fine here."

"Well everyone's already all set up out there," Ben told her as he stripped off his police shirt to reveal his plain white T-shirt underneath, "So if they need me I'll go. But I'm tired so for now I'll be here."

Then he disappeared into the washroom to finish getting changed.

Rey wouldn't admit it, but she was nervous. Bobby's words shouldn't have had such a hold on her, but they did. She knew she was safe inside the walls. They'd explicitly told her that they'd only come after her if she'd been found outside, and the people guarding had been instructed to keep the door closed no matter what. Even if they did get in, there were tons of people on guard, and Ben was in the room with her. She secretly hoped he wouldn't have to leave.

Rey got settled into bed and curled up under the covers. The curtains were closed, she'd locked the front and back windows, and she'd set the alarm. Everything was fine. 

Rey threw off the covers and got out of bed. Ben hadn't done up all the locks after he'd come into the room. She went over to the doors and did all the locks up from top to bottom, then double checked the alarm, before crawling back into bed.

"You okay?" 

Rey jumped at the sound of Ben's voice, she hadn't realized that'd he'd come out of the washroom. She turned around to see him sitting on the couch. 

"Yeah, I'm fine."

"You just kinda..." he started, "Jumped out of bed."

"Yeah."

"To lock the door."

"Yeah."

"Are you sure you're okay?"

"Yeah."

"Okay, goodnight."

"Goodnight, Ben," Rey rolled back over and curled up on her side. She wanted to close her eyes and relax, but her racing thoughts had her afraid to close her eyes.

"Rey?"

"Yeah?"

"I'm here for you."

"I know."

There was silence between them for a few moments.

"Ben?"

"Yeah."

"Can you come here?" Rey rolled around to face him.

"Where?"

"Here."

"Like? To the bed?"

Rey nodded.

"To sleep?"

Rey nodded again, "You don't have to. I don't wanna touch or anything... that sounded weird. I just don't want to be alone."

"Okay," Ben replied, getting off the couch.

Rey moved over to make room for Ben in the double bed. When he sat down on the side the mattress sank under his weight and Rey found herself holding onto the sheets to avoid rolling towards him. He laid down next to her on his back, staring up at the ceiling. He didn't look at her, and although that was what she wanted, it still felt weird.

She rolled over onto her left side, facing away from him, and closed her eyes. A few minutes prior she'd been worried about the men breaking into her room and hurting her, but now all she could think about was how close Ben was. It felt better to stress over him than to worry about being murdered. 

His breaths were deep, and she was still clinging to the sheets to keep herself from rolling into his side. She wasn't sure if she'd be able to relax with her fingers cramping up. Relaxing herself, she loosened her fingers and let herself move towards him. Nothing happened. She decided to relax a little more.

When eventually she let go of the sheets altogether, everything was fine. Rey took a deep breath, and as she exhaled she felt her skin touch his. 

She unintentionally squealed and pulled herself up and away from him on the bed. Ben laughed behind her.

"I thought you were asleep?" Rey said without looking at him.

"No, just watching you."

"Sorry." 

"It's okay. You're allowed to touch me, we're sleeping together after all."

"What?" 

"That came out very wrong," Ben laughed.

"Yeah, it did."

Rey could feel him roll around to face her, "I'm just saying," he said, "You don't need to feel anxious about getting close to me. We've hugged and stuff."

"That was hugging," She replied, "This is different."

"Do you want me to go back to the couch?"

"No," she snapped, "Sorry. I'm scared."

"Of Bobby and Hux?"

"Yeah."

She felt him move again behind her, "They're not getting in here."

"I know, but I'm still worried."

"And that's understandable. What they did was horrible. What they said was horrible too. It would be weird if you weren't upset."

Rey didn't reply.

"But listen, you don't have to be afraid. I'm here for you. I'll always be here for you. Even if the worst they ever do to you after this is haunt your dreams. I'm here. You don't need to be afraid of me too."

"I'm not-"

"I know you don't feel like you're afraid. In comparison to them I probably feel like nothing to you."

"Ben-"

"You don't have to hide yourself from me." 

Rey was frozen, she could feel her heart pounding in her chest and tears beginning to build up behind her eyes.

She felt Ben's hand stroking her messy hair, "I feel it too."

Rey had never thought about her feelings towards Ben directly. She knew she liked him. Enjoyed his company, felt safe with him, didn't want to be around if he wasn't with her at the end of the day. But she'd never thought about what that meant. She'd never labelled her feelings because she was always so worried about something else. Why was she so scared of touching him? Why had she invited him to bed? She wouldn't have asked the same of Rose or Finn or Poe. Maybe she wanted something more from him.

She turned around to face Ben, who was lying close and looking at her like she was the most important person in the world. 

"I don't want to lose you," she said, the tears welling up in her eyes, "To the zombies or to Hux or to anything else that comes out of this Fracking. I still feel weird about even meeting you. You're the best person I've ever had in my life and I met you through the death of my best friends. Life has become so unpredictable, I don't even think about normal things anymore. I haven't thought about who you are to me, you just are."

Ben wiped a tear from her cheek that she hadn't even realized she'd spilled. His thumb was soft against her skin and left it burning after his touch. His hand lingered on her neck, even after he'd wiped the tear away. Rey was comforted by the gesture. 

"That's okay," he told her, "You don't have to rush. It's a confusing and scary time. I just want you to know that when you do figure it out, I'll be here. I'll wait for you."

"Okay," Rey whispered in reply.

"Go to sleep," He told her, before moving his hand from her neck and rolling back onto his back. The spot where he'd been touching her felt icy cold in his absence. She lingered for a moment before turning back onto her side.

Talking to him hadn't made finding sleep any easier. She kept going back over his words. I'll wait for you. I feel it too. It was like he'd read her. He'd read her in a way that she hadn't been able to read herself, but now that he'd opened the door for her it was like she could see herself clearly.

"Ben," she said, sitting up in bed abruptly.

"You okay?" He asked, propping himself up on one elbow next to her. 

Without thinking, she leaned forward and pressed her lips to his. It lasted only a second before she jumped away, afraid. Her eyes were wide as she looked down at him, waiting for a response.

A brief smiled flashed across his face, and then he had his hand around the back of her neck and was pulling her back to him.

Their lips met again, and Ben's firm hand on the back of her neck kept her from being scared away again. Without breaking the kiss or moving his hand, Ben sat up to be level with her face. His other hand wrapped around her waist and pulled her closer. Suddenly Rey wanted nothing but to be touching him. She didn't want to exist without his hands on her.

Rey threw her arms around his neck and pulled herself closer. Ben used the arm on her waist to pull Rey into his lap to get her as close as possible. She ran her tongue along his bottom lip, asking for permission to explore. He let her in without a second's hesitation, putting more pressure on the back of her neck as if he wanted to consume her.

Rey let out a moan when she felt his tongue against hers, and felt heat building up all throughout her body. When Ben broke away for breath, it was too soon for her.

"Ben," she practically whined.

"I'm here," he said, and removed his hand from her neck to wrap both of his arms around her waist, "I've wanted to do that since the day I met you."

"That's kinda weird," Rey laughed.

"I don't care," he said before nuzzling into the warm skin on her neck and pressing kisses from her chest up to her jaw. 

When their lips finally met again it was deeper and less hesitant than before. As they kissed, Ben's hands began to move down her back and towards her ass. Just as he was about to touch her, and Rey about to lean into his hands, there was a crash from outside.

Rey jumped off of Ben and away from the door. He glared in the direction of the door and stood up off the bed, preparing to attack. He looked back at Rey to see that she already had her machete in hand. Then there was a knock.

"It's Rose," the voice, that decidedly belonged to Rose, said from the other side of the door. "Paige left her inhaler in here and I need to get it for her."

"I'll get it," Ben said as Rey was reaching for the small blue puffer.

He took it in his hands and went to the door. He unlocked everything except the chain, and cracked the door open to find that it was in fact Rose, all by herself.

"Sorry," she said.

"It's okay," Ben reassured her, "You just startled us that's all."

Then he closed the door and re-locked everything before turning back to Rey. 

"You okay?" He asked.

"Yeah," she said, "I... I think I just want to go to sleep."

"Okay," Ben said, reaching over and ruffling Rey's hair, "Do you still want me in the bed?"

Rey nodded.

Ben crawled in beside her, laying on his back and letting her decide how close she wanted to be. He was grateful that she curled up next to him immediately, resting her head on his chest and pressing her warm body up against his. He wrapped his arm around her and planted a kiss on the top of her head before closing his eyes.

It wasn't long before they were both asleep, the men from earlier had completely left their minds.


	12. Chapter 12

"So what am I supposed to do?" Rey asked, "Live the rest of my life inside these walls because some men threatened me? No. We have a good team. We have you. I need to go out and find what I need for this project. We can't and we won't do it without me."

Ben sighed in defeat, "You're right."

"I'm not going anywhere without you," she said.

"Who's agreed to come?" 

"You, me, Rose, and Poe. Finn, Kaydel, and Cliff are in charge while we're gone."

"Maybe we should leave Dameron behind and take Finn instead," Ben suggested.

"Ben."

"Sorry."

"Come on," Rey said as she threw a sweater over her shirt and left their room.

Poe, Rose, Finn, Kaydel, and Cliff were already waiting for them in the parking lot when Rey came out. Ben followed shortly behind.

"Ready to go?" Poe asked.

"Yup," Rey said, taking the machete Poe held out to her. The same machete that had taken a chunk out of her arm just a few days before. Rey thought it was symbolic, that's why she'd asked Poe to get it for her. Ben was handed an axe from Cliff.

"We'll be gone for 3 hours at max," Rose said, "It's too dangerous to stay out later than that right now."

Finn looked at Rey, "Do you have the list I gave you?"

Rey pulled a folded up piece of paper from her pocket. Earlier in the day Finn had written down all of the parts necessary to make a high powered radio. The goal of their mission was to get all of the parts so Rey and Finn could get to work. Rey had a plan for the radio she was going to build, but the most she told anyone was that she wanted to speak to nearby communities. She was afraid that she might get ridiculed. 

"Got it." 

"So I guess we're ready to go," Ben said.

The four of them hopped in the car, Ben in the driver's seat of the police car, Rey in the passenger's, and the other two in the back.

They drove to Bobby's gas station and shop. Since they'd cleared out the hardware store on the first day, the gas station was their next best option. They weren't willing to go to the next town over due to their limited gas resources. They'd be gone for too long. The gas station was a high risk, but Ben knew for a fact that Bobby had stored some high tech equipment in there. That had been why Ben wanted Rey to stay behind. He couldn't think of a better place for Bobby and his group to go.

They pulled into the parking lot of the gas station and Ben parked the car. He looked over at Rey, and she could tell he was anxious. Rey's eyes met his and she reached over and out her hand on his. Without saying a word she let him know that it would be fine, and she could tell that he understood.

"Are we going out?" Rose asked.

"Yeah," Ben said, getting out of the car and feeling a lot more confident than he had just a few minutes before. Rey followed shortly after.

The four of them approached the building slowly, weapons drawn. Ben was the one to kick open to door and step inside first. It was empty. The group did a quick walk through in and around the building but found no other people, undead or alive. 

They quickly grabbed all of the supplies they needed and headed back to the car. 

"That was easy. Like, suspiciously easy," Rey commented as they packed supplies into the trunk.

"I'm trying not to think about it," Poe added.

Rey hopped into the passenger seat and the first thing she noticed was the crackle of the walkie talkie that she'd accidentally left in the car's cup holder rather than bringing it in with her. The voice on the other end was muffled and Rey assumed that Finn had probably just shoved his walkie talkie in his pants and she was listening to his conversations from in his pocket. 

"Finn, everything okay?" Rey checked in just to be sure.

She continued to only hear the muffled talking as the other three got into the car and looked at Rey to see what was going on.

"Finn?" She tried again.

"Rey? Is that you?" Finn finally replied, he sounded frightened and out of breath, but Rey couldn't tell if that was just the effect of the radio. 

"Is everything alright?" Rey's heart began to hammer in her chest, and she tried to calm herself down by telling herself that it was just the static. She would soon learn that she should have acted faster on that anxiety.

"Get back here now!" Finn demanded.

Ben snatched the walkie talkie out of Rey's hand and she glared at him.

"Finn, just tell us what is going on."

"They're back. They guys are back. We need help."

Ben's eyes met Rey's and the two were overwhelmed with fear.

"We have to go!" Rose yelled from the back. 

Ben started the car and they headed back to the motel at twice the speed they'd arrived at . 

Rey's heart seemed to slam against her ribs and she felt like she was going to be sick. She tried to swallow the feeling, wanting to be strong for Ben. She couldn't have him worrying about her if they had to fight for their community. 

When they arrived at the motel the four of them were filled with horror. There were zombies swarming the entrance, and one of the doors barricading the motel from the outside world had been knocked down, allowing the group of zombies entrance to their sanctuary.

"Oh, god," Poe gasped.

"Everyone hold on!" Ben exclaimed.

"Ben, wha-" before Rey could finish her sentence Ben was driving towards the heard at full speed. 

The car rammed into the crowd and Rey watched as undead bodies rolled over top of the car or got crushed underneath. The entire car bounced up and down as they mowed over bodies and finally burst past the crowd. 

As soon as the car had stopped moving Rey climbed out of the passenger seat with her machete in hand. She looked around their camp to see that they had just made it on time. The people of their community had their weapons raised and were just preparing to fight. 

"If you can't fight get inside and lock your doors!" Rey yelled over the panicked yelling of the people around her, before turning to face the heard.

Without a moment's hesitation she lunged at the nearest zombie to her and took it's head clean off. As if she was their cue, everyone else began to fight as well. Cliff fired a shotgun into the head of a zombie near him. Ben swung his axe into a near undead woman's skull. 

Rey lunged forward at the next one, stepping on the dusted body of the monster she'd just killed. She swung wildly into the crowd, with only a slight sense of where she had to aim. The zombies quickly surrounded her, and the only thing stopping her from being eaten alive was that she kept moving and kept attacking. Zombies were being taken down with every swing, but it seemed that with each undead down, another two took it's place. Rey quickly became exhausted, and it was her sheer will to survive that kept her fighting.

Suddenly she was grabbed on the back of the shoulders. She tried to swing around to find the culprit, hoping it was Finn or Ben who'd found her to help out. But instead she turned to see the rotting face of a dead person, and stumbled over the mouldy ankles of another. She fell and hit the ground, machete still in hand. The undead looked down on her with hungry eyes, and she slashed at as many as she could see, but her attempts were useless. Her blows cut their flesh, not near enough to their heads to do any damage.

Rey thought that she might die. She thought that she'd met her end. She could even hear Ben's voice calling to her, and she called back to him. If she were going to die, at least let Ben live. 

But just as she was about to let go, one of the zombies heads blew up in front over her, and dust rained down onto her face. Before she knew it the zombies around her were having their heads blown off one by one. 

Rey saw a figure out of the corner of her eye and suddenly someone grabbed her shoulder, yanking her to her feet. She came face to face with Rose, who had a handgun in one hand, and Rey's arm in the other.

"We have to help Ben," Rose told her, "Over here."

Rey shook the fog of her near death from her head and followed Rose. She could see Ben in the midst of a crowd of zombies, towering over the group of them. 

"Can you get them without hitting him?" Rey asked.

"I did it with you didn't I?" Rose raised the gun and fired two shots. Two direct hits to two different zombies.

Rey raised her machete and ran to the crowd. With a newfound strength she knocked them off one by one with Rose's bullets covering her whenever she had her back turned. Before she knew it she was face to face with Ben. 

They smirked at each other, then instinctively turned their backs towards one another and fought off the zombies coming towards them from either side. With them together, plus Rose's help, they made quick work of the heard. Before they knew it all of the zombies were dead and their heads were spinning.

They leaned against each other, still back to back, as they scanned the rest of the area. The ground was littered with bodies. Some of them zombies, but others were people Rey recognized. Friends. People she was supposed to be protecting. People she had seen ready to fight only minutes before. 

One figure caught her eye in the crowd. One figure who was noticeably still alive. His red hair stood out in any situation. 

Rey rightened herself then stormed over to Hux, who sat on the ground with a huge gash in his head.

"Are you responsible for this?" Rey yelled as she approached him.

Hux looked up at her with fear in his eyes.

"Did you do this?" Rey screamed again, throwing her leg back and sending it into his side. Hux crumpled to the ground. 

"It was him and Bobby and the group," Finn said as he approached, also bleeding heavily, "They came back with their guns, firing at us and trying to hit the people on duty. They fired at the door until it was weak enough for them to push down. But their gunshots attracted the heard. They didn't even have time to threaten us before the zombies were here."

Rey's head spun in horror and disbelief. This massacre had happened out of the group of men's pure rage towards her. 

"You'd better not be fucking blaming yourself for this," a familiar voice said from behind her. Rey spun around to see Ben, covered in blood and dust; none of it his own. His eyes were dark and angry, as if he might snap at her if she told him what she was really thinking.

Instead of replying, Rey burst into tears and turned back to Finn.

"Who's gone?" She sobbed, "who didn't make it?"

"Kaydel," Finn told her, "That's all I know for sure. I saw her go down and I tried to help but I..." 

"Don't blame yourself either, Finn," Ben said from behind Rey, "Now I need you both to step away so I can take care of Hux."

Neither of them argued. Finn extended a hand to Rey and she took it. They stepped out of Ben's way before Finn wrapped her in a hug. She cried into his shoulder as she heard the gunshot go off, and Hux's body fully collapse to the ground.


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter and the next are just gunna be super chill fluffy and smutty goodness. Enjoy this chapter and the next will hopefully be up really soon!!

Rey was exhausted from hauling bodies. Those that were unfamiliar to anyone in the community went outside of their boundaries to be burned later. Those that were familiar stayed inside to be buried. In the end they'd lost 1/3 of their community to the attack. But after a few hours the job was done, and a makeshift door was put up so that everyone could get some rest. Cliff and Tallie offered to take the night shift, and Rey couldn't have been happier to give it to them. 

By the end of the job Rey felt as though she might lose her legs from underneath her. She'd never been closer to giving up and collapsing. But she refused to retire to her room until every person in their community was settled, despite much protests from Ben. Eventually even he had gone to bed.

The time finally came and Rey was happy to head back to her room. She went inside, locked every lock on the door behind her, and made a beeline for Ben's bed to collapse on top of. 

Every night since their return to Room #1 they'd been back to their normal sleeping arrangements. Rey on the couch - despite Paige's warning and Ben's persistence - and Ben in the bed. Ben was already settled in, and when she opened the door he quickly wiped away the tears streaming down his face.

"Are you okay?" He asked. 

"No, not really," Rey replied with her head still buried in the blankets.

"Yeah, me neither."

"Can I sleep with you tonight?" She asked, the question took him by surprise. But of course he would have welcomed her whether she has asked or not.

"Of course," he replied, "but I want to do something for you first."

Rey propped her head up to look at him, "what?"

"We need to get you cleaned up. You're covered in blood and dust."

Rey sat herself up and looked at the dirtiness of the skin on her hands, "yeah I guess I could shower."

"No," Ben argued, throwing off the covers, "I'm going to run you a bath. You've been working hard. It's my turn to take care of you."

"Ben, I don't-"

"I'm not taking no for an answer," he said, taking her by both of her hands and leading her to the washroom.

Rey sat on the tiled floor of the washroom as Ben started up the tub. In the end it took him 20 minutes to get it just right. He dug through the cupboards to find the bubble bath that he'd sworn Danny said he had in each room. He'd been back and forth from the stove with pots of water when what was coming out of the faucet wasn't hot enough, but checking with Rey often to make sure it wasn't too hot, and went out of his way to find a fresh cloth for her to clean herself with.

"I think that should do it," Ben said, putting his hands on his hips. Rey stared up at him and admired the way he looked in his white t-shirt and black shorts. She was so tired she almost couldn't process what he was saying, she just stared.

"Are you okay?" He asked. 

She just nodded in response, not breaking her stare.

"Okay, get in," he said, holding up a towel in front of his face to assure her that he wasn't watching.

Exhausted Rey couldn't care less if he saw her naked, but she was sure that Well Rested Rey would appreciate the gesture in the future. 

She took her time in peeling off all of her clothes and leaving them in a pile on the floor. She stepped into the bath to find it slightly cold, but Rey would never break Ben's heart in telling him that. The slightly cold, water wrapped itself around her as she sank into the tub and she instantly felt more relaxed. She wasn't sure how Ben had known exactly what she needed, but she was grateful nonetheless. 

"Are you in?" He asked.

"Yeah."

"Ok, you're just gunna have to trust that I'm not going to look at your body. But if you want me to leave I'll do that."

"No, you can stay," Rey said, "The bubbles have me covered. I want you to stay."

"Thank you," he said as he lowered the towel and positioned himself on the floor at the end of the tub where Rey's head rested. 

"I'll wash your hair," he said, "I just want you to relax."

"Okay," was all Rey said in reply.

Ben had found a plastic glass in one of the cupboards of the kitchen in their room. Rey watched as he dipped it under the surface of the water, and it filled itself up. The cup disappeared from her sight as he brought it up, over her head, and poured it over her hair. He kept one hand at her forehead to prevent anything from getting on her face. He repeated the gesture a handful of times until he felt her hair was wet all the way through. Rey loved the feel of his hand against her forehead and his fingers feeling through her hair.

Next she watched as he poured some shampoo from the bottle into the palm of his hand. His hands made a wet sound as they rubbed together before he placed them on her. His fingers tangled in her hair as he made sure to scrub every inch. His hands were gentle on her scalp but still offered enough pressure to relieve the tension in her head. She loved the feeling of his hands in her hair, fingers intertwined with each strand, and she wished they would never leave. But once he was certain he'd washed every last bit, he wiped his hands on the towel and refilled the cup with water. He poured the cups over her head over and over again, once again protecting her face, until all the shampoo was gone.

Rey was sure she'd never been more relaxed in her life. She'd never felt safer, even before the polar fracking and the zombies. She'd never felt safer in anyone's hands, even when she thought back to what little she could remember of her parents. 

"I can wash your skin, too," he offered, "but you'll have to do most of it yourself."

"Okay," Rey replied, "you could do my back and my arms. I'll get the rest."

"Sounds like a plan."

He took the clean cloth that he'd found for her and dipped it in the tub. Then he squirted some of the motel's body wash onto it, before repositioning himself so that he was at the side of the tub, facing Rey. He took her hand in his and started at her wrist, scrubbing away all of the dust and blood from the day.

She watched as he focused intensely on getting her clean. He kept his promise that his eyes would not go anywhere they didn't belong, and he focused exclusively on her arm, occasionally glancing up at her face to make sure she hadn't fallen asleep.

He worked his way up her arm, and when he was finished he dipped the cloth back into the bath water and wrung it out. He wiped away all of the soap from her arm with the wet cloth. 

Ben repeated the same actions on Rey's other arm, before repositioning again and asking her to lean forward so he could get her back.

"Okay, I'll leave so you can finish up, but I'll be right outside," he said once he was done wiping all the soap from her back.

"Don't go," she asked, "Just hold the towel up again."

"Okay."

Rey finished when Ben had started, doing a much more rushed job than he had done. Without his hands on her she had no desire to stay in the bath, and just wanted to get back to being with him.

"I'm done," Rey said as she unplugged the tub, "Can I have the towel?"

Ben handed her the towel he'd been using to cover his face but kept his eyes closed. He even put a hand over his eyes for good measure. She quickly dried herself off and wrapped the towel around her clean body.

She reached up and removed his hands from his eyes. Rey let their fingers intertwine as she stared deep into his eyes, and Ben stared right back. A small smile crept up his face and Rey mirrored him.

"Thank you," she said as she leaned forward and planted a gentle kiss on his nose. He went from a small smile to a big toothy grin, and brought one of his hands up to cup her face. 

Rey was addicted to his smile. In her opinion he didn't smile enough, so when he did - and when it was her doing - her heart fluttered in her chest and she needed to keep him smiling.

She leaned forward to kiss him again, and this time her lips found his. 

Ben's hand moved from the side of Rey's face to the back of her head. His fingers tangled in her hair just as they had when he was washing her hair in the bath, and even before then when they'd kissed a few nights prior. His other hand wrapped around her waist and pulled her body to his. Rey wrapped her arms around Ben's neck and held him in place. The kiss felt long overdue for both of them - neither had so much as discussed the previous kiss. They'd just woken up the next morning and pretended everything was the same. 

Rey was the one to open her mouth and give Ben access. He didn't hesitate to explore her and he seemed to draw a groan deep from within her chest. She fisted her hands in his hair and pulled him down to her, even though she was already standing on her toes. 

Every day since their previous kiss, Rey had fantasized about him. The moment her head rested on his chest that night she regretted not going further with him. She couldn't tell if Ben felt the same, so she acted as if nothing had happened and he'd done the same. 

Her fantasy of running her tongue along his bottom lip, biting, and tugging on it had become so familiar that it felt more like a memory. She'd dreamed about kissing him from his beautiful long eyelashes down his nose, lips, jaw, neck, chest, and even further. Every morning she'd woken up with the weight of desire in her chest, and nothing to do with it. She never knew if she would die before she had the opportunity to act on her urges, and in that moment Rey felt she'd rather die than let anyone stop her. 

"Fuck," Ben groaned as Rey acted on her fantasy of using her teeth on Ben's lip. She could feel something long and hard pressing into her belly and she didn't have to guess what it was. 

Rey broke away from the kiss for just a moment to moan out, "I want you so bad."

"Me too," he groaned.

Rey lowered her hand to the hardness in his shorts and he gasped, "I feel how much you want me."

"Rey, wait," he stopped her hand from touching him by grabbing her by the wrist. 

She stepped away from him, shocked and hurt, "What?" 

"No!" Ben exclaimed, "no, no, no, no, it's not like that. I just-"

Rey's eyebrows furrowed in concern.

"If we're going to do this," Ben started again, "I want to do it right. Not with you in a towel on the bathroom floor."

Rey smiled in relief, "I thought you were gunna say you didn't want me."

"I want you so bad, but I want to be able to appreciate you properly. I want to give you what you deserve," Ben told her, "Is that okay?"

Rey nodded, "Perfect." 

He took her two hands in his and brought them to his lips for a kiss.

"I want you to go put on whatever clothes you feel best in," he told her, "I'm going to be in here and you can call me out when you're ready."

Rey nodded and left the bathroom giddily. Ben closed the door as she left, smiling as he did it.


	14. Chapter 14

Rey knocked lightly on the bathroom door as soon as she had all her clothes on. She'd thrown on some panties and a bra - even though they'd just be taken right off - just to add to the fun.

Ben opened the door eagerly and looked at her clothed body up and down as if she were a gift.

"Are you ready?" He asked. 

Rey nodded in response. 

Before she had a chance to react Ben had his hands around her waist and lifted her up. She wrapped her legs around his hips to help him hold her there, and their lips collided. Her hands went straight to his hair where she purposely tangled her fingers in his thick black locks and pulled him closer. He moaned into her mouth and the sound he made set fire ablaze in her stomach. 

Ben's hands moved from her waist down so he was cupping her ass. His hands felt huge on her small body. His fingers kneaded at her ass and pulled her into his groin where she could feel him getting harder than he had before. 

Ben walked her over to the bed, where he let her down gently so she was laying on her back. Rey let out a whine when her hands had to leave his hair and her lips were cold without him. 

"I'm coming," he said as he crawled onto the bed on top of her.

He nuzzled his nose under her jaw and began to pepper soft kisses down her neck and onto her collarbone. She squeaked when Ben nipped at the skin in between her collar bones on her chest. 

Ben smiled up at her and noticed fear in her eyes. She looked like she was trying hard to cover it up, but he could still sense that something was off. He wondered what he could've done that scared her when he realized... 

"Wait, is this your first time?"

Rey looked down and away from him, "I wasn't going to say anything."

"Why?"

"I didn't want you to be afraid," She said, biting her lip, "I thought you wouldn't want to touch someone with no experience, especially since I'm younger."

Ben thought back to his early 20s, back to when he was her age, before he'd come to Centerville. Most of his sexual experience from back then was a mistake. There was no easy way of putting it. He had a complicated childhood and he'd thought that having sex with women he hardly knew would give him the deep emotional connections he desired. He was wrong, and he had many regrets. He'd lost his virginity to someone who's name he couldn't even remember.

"I've kissed before," Rey began to explain, "I've made out with guys but that's it."

"You don't need to explain yourself to me," Ben interrupted, "You've made it clear that this is what you want and that is all that matters. I want you. This is your body and your life and your decision. If you want me back then it doesn't matter what experience you do or don't have."

"I want this," Rey told him, "So bad."

"Then there's only one condition."

"What?"

"You are going to let me make you feel better than you ever have in your entire life."

Rey smiled, "Agreed."

Ben kissed her on the lips. It was deep and passionate and it made Rey feel like her heart was pumping love into her blood and around her body. She feared regret, but what she felt for Ben was nothing like what she’d felt for any of the boys she’d dated in high school. 

Ben broke away from the kiss and stared deep into her eyes for just a moment. He thought about saying something to her, saying what had been on his mind for weeks, but decided against it. Rey was already afraid and Ben didn’t want to scare her more.

“Stop staring,” Rey giggled and leaned forward to latch her lips around a patch of skin just above his collar bone. She rolled the skin between her teeth and massaged it with her tongue. When she let him go there was a beautiful red mark blossoming on his skin. She smiled at the bruise and looked up at Ben.

“Thank you,” he laughed and gave her a series of kisses on her lips.

Again he planted kisses along her jaw starting by her chin and working around to her ear. He nipped the skin behind her ear and smiled when she let out a squeak. He began to work his way down her throat, putting more teeth and tongue into his kisses, using her moans to fuel his passion. 

When he worked his way down to her collar bone, he asked, “can I take your shirt off?”

“Please do.”

Ben took the bottom of her skin tight grey shirt in his hands and pulled it over her head. He carelessly tossed it somewhere else in the room and forgot about it. Underneath she wore a plain black underwire bra that framed her figure perfectly. For a minute all Ben could do was admire her.

“Fuck, I just need-“

He cut himself off to frantically remove her bra and threw it into the same abyss where her shirt was sitting. 

“Fuck.”

“Ben?”

“You’re so fucking beautiful,” he told her as he nuzzled into her chest and gave her more rough kisses in between her breasts. 

Rey’s heart slammed in her chest as he cursed over her and kissed her passionately. No one had ever appreciated her like Ben. Not even herself.

His hand gently touched her left breast like it was a flower. Like he was touching it just to appreciate its beauty and feel it’s softness on his fingers. The anticipation was killing her.

“Please, Ben,” she begged him.

Without another word his gentle touch disappeared and was replaced by the same desperation Rey felt within herself. His hand squeezed and tugged at her breast as he used his mouth on the other. She felt his tongue swirl around her nipple, his teeth grazed her skin and a deep moan was stolen from her chest. The feelings of heat and intensity went directly to her center.

“I’m gunna make you feel so good,” he said in between kisses as he began to trail down her chest and belly.

“Please,” she gasped, “Please, Ben.”

“I need these off,” Ben said as he tugged at the buttons on her jeans. 

Rey felt like her skin was on fire, and the mere second without Ben’s mouth on her body felt extremely overwhelming. Rey grabbed Ben by the sides of his face and brought him back up to her.

She kissed him and forced her tongue into his mouth. He moaned into her and let her take control of the kiss while he continued to undo her jeans and slide them down as best he could with their mouths still attached. 

Again, he was the one to break away from the kiss to tug down her jeans and panties. Rey wouldn’t let him go so fast. She brought his head back down and latched her lips around a patch of skin at the corner of his jaw. She sucked and bit at him with the full intention of leaving another bruise. She felt him nibbling along the crook of her neck as she left her mark.

When she was done with him Ben finished taking off her clothes and tossed them aside. Rey admired the way his hair was a mess on his head, and his face was flushed red. She’d never seen someone so beautiful. Ben was a lot of firsts for her. 

His hands ran down her body from her chest down to her hips, touching her again like she was a work of art, like too much pressure would damage the work.

“Dammit, Ben,” Rey cursed at him, “I need you to just fuck me.”

Ben lowered his face to between her legs without looking away from her sex. Rey almost felt uncomfortable with the way he was admiring her.

When he spoke his breath was hot on her skin, “You promised you’d let me make you feel better than you ever have in your life”

“Just be faster about it.”

Ben presses slow, delicate kisses to her belly, “I know what I’m doing, Rey.”

Rey let out a frustrated groan at his stubbornness.

Ben ran his tongue along her folds, sending a shiver down Rey’s spine. Her fingers curled in the sheets at her sides. 

Rey gasped when his tongue finally met her clit. He was gentle but the feeling still took her breath away. 

He started with slow circles and Rey could feel her pleasure throughout her whole body. Gradually his movements became faster and more confident. She twitched and squirmed underneath his movements.

With one long drag of his tongue he paused to look up at her, “Baby, you gotta stay still for me.”

Rey nodded, “Sorry.”

Ben brought his mouth back down on her and Rey moaned. He had been right. Even at his slowest, most gentle pace, he was still making her feel better than she ever had in her life. 

Ben was done playing games. His tongue worked her clit relentlessly. 

Rey cursed out his name over and over and his pace sped up and she felt herself getting closer and closer to release.

Her fingers locked in his black hair and pulled his face into her. If she’d been in her right mind she might’ve worried that she was hurting him, but in the moment she was so overwhelmed with the feeling of her fucking her with his tongue that she couldn’t think of anything but her pleasure.

Rey’s head flew back as she let out a loud, guttural moan. The feeling was building in her center and her hips bucked up against his face. He used on strong hand to hold her hips in place and somehow that only intensified the feeling.

The pressure was building and Rey’s legs automatically wrapped around Ben’s neck to pull him in as close as she could get him.

“I’m gunna cum, Ben!” 

Every muscle in her body tensed as she was overwhelmed with pleasure. Her body twitched uncontrollably as Ben slowly worked her down from her high. 

Ben wiped his mouth with the back of his hand and came down to plant delicate kisses along Rey’s face.

“How are you feeling?” He asked her.

“So fucking good.”

Ben smiled, “You have such a filthy little mouth when you fuck don’t you, Rey.”

Rey could only groan in reply. 

“Are you ready for me?”

“Fuck, yes.”

Ben moved to take his shirt off when Rey held up her arms to stop him.

“Wait!” She exclaimed, “I want to be on top when you get undressed.”

“Um, okay.”

Ben rolled them both over so that he was laying in his back and Rey was straddling his hips. He could feel how wet she was on his cock through his shorts and his boxers. 

Rey grabbed the bottom of his shirt with both of her hands and he helped her pull it over his head. 

“Fuck,” Rey cursed at the sight of his bare chest in front of her, “I’ve wanted to see you like this for so long. But you always get changed in the fucking bathroom like you’re trying to torment me.”

Ben laughed at that. 

Rey traced the lines of his abs with her finger. She wanted to trace them with her tongue, and leave marks along his body the same as the ones one his collar bone and his jaw. Her fingers trailed down his body to the waistline of his pants. 

“One day,” Rey started, “I’m going to leave bruises all over your whole body. But for now...”

Rey pulled down Ben’s shorts and boxers in one swift movement. His cock sprang out in front of her eyes. She’d never seen one in person before, but even with her lack of experience she could tell that his was huge.

She wrapped her small hand around the back of his cocked and pumped up. He cursed her name at her movement. A bead of precum formed at the top, and Rey bent forward to lick it off of him. He was salty in a way that made Rey’s belly warm and she wanted more of him.

She wrapped her mouth around the head of his cock and massaged him with her tongue. She fell in love with the obscene sounds he was making above her at each movement she made. 

She started to take more of him into her mouth when Ben stopped her with one hand cupping her cheek.

“Rey,” he said, “I want to make you feel good today.”

“I want to taste you,” she replied.

“I’ll let you do it another day,” he said, guiding her back up to him, “But today’s about you.”

Rey nodded. 

“Get on your back.”

Rey flipped herself over and watched as Ben sat up and towered over her. She could see the shiny bead of precum forming at his head again, this time he stroked his length, using it to lube himself for her. He looked so intimidating towering over her, her legs spread for him as he prepared his cock for her. 

“This might hurt a bit, because it’s your first time,” Ben explained as he stroked himself, “So I’m just gunna do it quick and then we can get to it.”

Rey nodded in agreement.

Ben lowered himself over her, trapping her body between his arms and underneath his firm chest. The head of his dick rubbed against her entrance and sent shivers all over her body.

“Okay, this might hurt for a sec but then it’s going to feel so good,” he explained, his cock waiting at her entrance for Rey to give permission.

“Do it,” she replied.

“Wrap your legs around me.”

She obeyed. 

In a split second Ben pushed himself into her and just as quickly pulled back out. Rey gasped in pain and clung to Ben’s shoulders, digging her nails into his skin.

He removed himself from her entirely as they waited for the pain to fade.

“That’s the worst part done,” he told her, “It’s all good from here.”

Rey nodded, the pain slowly fading. He kissed her gently on the forehead, nose, and then cheeks. 

“How do you feel?” He asked.

“Better.”

“Are you ready?”

“Yeah.” 

Ben lined his cock up at her entrance again, and all of the pain she felt seconds earlier was gone, replaced by a burning want and need. 

He started slow, entering her inch by inch. With the pain out of the way she could truly feel him inside of her. She could feel him stretching her out, with each movement feeling like electricity throughout her body.

“Fuck, you’re so tight. I’ve never-“ he was cut off when a moan ripped through his throat.

When he was fully inside her Rey felt big. She felt full with his cock. Like there was no room in her body for anything else. Like she’d just eaten a full meal, but more satisfying.

Gradually he began to move faster. He pulled his cock out and pushed it back in at full force. Each of his exhales was a moan and all of his inhales were a gasp. Rey never thought that noises could turn her on as much as his were in that moment. 

Ben bit down on the skin on her shoulder as he sped up his pace. 

“You feel so fucking good,” Rey gasped out.

“God, I haven’t cum in so long. I’m going to fill you up with me. Gunna fill you up with my cum so fucking full you’ll never be without me.” 

“Please,” Rey gasped, “Cum in me, Ben.”

In one swift movement Ben rolled onto his back and swung Rey around on top of him. He used his hands on her hips to lift her up and slam her down at a speed she couldn’t keep up with. She fell forward onto his chest and let him fuck her relentlessly. If she’d thought his tongue on her clit was the best feeling ever, she was wrong. Him thrusting in and out of her, using his hands to guide her when she couldn’t move fast enough for his liking, that was the best feeling. 

It only took seconds in the new position for Rey to be cumming around his cock. Ecstasy shot through her body and she collapsed onto his chest, completely spent. 

“I love you,” the words came out of her mouth before she could process them.

Ben came with a gasp. 

They laid in each other’s arms, gasping for breath.

“Did you mean that?” Ben asked once his heart rate had begun to settle.

“What?”

“When you said you love me.”

“Oh.”

“Because I love you too,” he told her, “I have for a while.”

Rey smiled into his chest, “Yeah, I did. I was scared to say it and then it just came out.”

“I’m so glad you did,” he said. He wrapped his arms around her and moved her to the bed next to him with such ease. He positioned her so they were laying on their sides, facing each other. He kept his arms wrapped around her and she nuzzled into his chest.

“I love you,” she whispered against his skin.

“I love you, too.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It took me three days to write this because I was so anxious about getting it right. I really hope you enjoyed it!


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys!!  
> Sorry I haven’t updated in so so long. This whole world situation has got me really out of whack. Tbh I thought I’d have more time to work on fics while in quarantine, but I’ve actually just come up with about 50 more ideas and can’t focus on any of them.  
> Anyways, enjoy!

Ben woke up the next morning to the sound of the door clicking as the locks were undone. He ignored the sound and nuzzled deeper into the sweet smelling hair of the girl in front of her. The door opened and Ben felt the cold breeze from outside on his bare shoulders. He tightened his arms around the smaller woman in his arms and pressed his eyes closed. Despite his efforts to remain in his peaceful sleep, he couldn't ignore the sound of the door slamming closed and someone shuffling around the room.

Ben cracked open his eyes to see Cliff roaming around the room to get settled. He assumed Cliff must have been settling in after his overnight shift, and let himself relax. Everything was fine. He could settle. 

Cliff looked over at Ben and noticed the smaller person that his body was curled around. 

He met Ben's eyes and snorted, "About time."

"Shut up," Ben muttered back.

At the sound of his voice, Rey began to stir in his arms. He expected to see her eyes open and wish her a good morning, but instead she rolled around to face him and nuzzled into his bare chest. Ben watched her with a smile on his face and his heart overwhelmingly full as she slept so peacefully wearing his white t-shirt. He pressed his lips to the hair on the top of her head and gave her several soft kisses before closing his eyes and letting himself fall asleep to the sound of them breathing in sync. 

~*~*~*~*~

Rey sat hunched over her project in the lobby. Building a radio was proving to be exactly as complicated as she'd expected it to be. Although Finn had experience with the project, and had warned her how difficult it would be without experience, she'd opted to do it on her own anyways. Regardless, she was nearly done.

It had been a week since she started working on it, and a week since she'd slept with Ben. Nothing as intimate had happened since, but she decided to ditch the couch and crawl into bed with him every night. Ben was not opposed to the idea at all.

They'd decided to keep the status of their relationship down low. If someone were to ask if they were dating, the wouldn't lie to them, but the both of them had a feeling that the rest of the community already assumed they were at that stage in their relationship. In Rey's opinion, announcing anything similar to "we're officially in a relationship together" would just be another way of telling the community "we fucked, so it's official". Ben had respected her avoidance of the announcement. He hadn't been too eager to tell anyone and everyone either.

In fact, Rey hadn't quite realized how much the community already suspected them to be involved with each other until they actually were. The first time he'd kissed her in public - on the forehead after she'd come down from one of her shifts - no one had batted an eye. They'd held hands while sitting on the porch outside of their room and watched numerous people walk by without lingering stares. The only time in their whole week of PDA that they were noticed, was their second leader's meeting since they'd decided to make it official, when Ben had subconsciously planted a kiss on Rey's cheek on his way out of the lobby and the rest of the group had cheered. That reaction had taken them both completely by surprise after the previous lack of any form of recognition. As it turns out, Cliff had spread the news in secret, and the group had been anxiously awaiting the first kiss at a meeting, so that they could congratulate the happy couple. Ben had not liked the attention at all.

Rey was happy to be back to her normal duties since her wounds had recovered. It had only been a week since they'd lost so many from their community, but having use of her body made working through the emotions much easier. She'd helped rebuild the wall, and had taken back most of her duties. Most importantly, she'd been able to work on her radio. She kept taking Lobby shifts to be able to sit and focus on it. 

She initially planned on building from scratch, and had all the supplies she needed to do so, but eventually decided that tearing apart an old one and using her supplies to encourage a stronger signal would be a better option. Finn, the expert in radio making, had agreed. So far the rebuild was much easier than starting from scratch. Rey was certain that there were only a few more touches she would need before it was finished.

But she'd yet to tell anyone her plan. She was afraid she'd embarrass herself if she even mentioned the idea. Even to Ben. If her plan failed, the least the radio could do would be to better communicate with other towns around them. Maybe start the process of finding a safer place than theirs, or having someone rescue them. Not that they really needed saving.

The door to the lobby swung open and Ben walked in, dressed in his police uniform, carrying a stack of dirty dishes from lunch. 

"How's it going?" He asked as he walked past her, into the back where he dropped all the dishes into the sink.

"Okay," she said, "Boring."

"You're almost there," he said from the back.

"I guess."

"Are you gunna tell me your plan at any point?" 

"Eventually. Only if it works."

Rey pushed herself up from the desk when she heard Ben turn on the faucet in the back. She needed a break from the radio and thinking washing the dishes could be a good distraction. Technically dish washing was part of her job, but she always avoided it.

"I'll do it," she told Ben, who already had his hands in the water.

She took his place in front of the sink and began to scrub all the dishes down with the hot, soapy water. Ben took the towel from the counter beside her and dried himself off.

"How are you feeling?" He asked.

"I need a distraction."

Rey watched from the corner of her eye as Ben closed the door from the back room to the lobby and locked it. She didn't stop him. She watched as he approached her from behind, and felt his hands slip around her waist. She kept washing dishes. His breath was hot on her neck as he planted kisses from the crook of her neck and worked his way up to behind her ear. 

"I can distract you."

"Yeah?" Rey kept washing dishes.

Ben ran a hand across her neck and swept away all of the loose hairs. He lowered his lips to her skin again, and Rey could feel herself growing very distracted from the task at hand. He wrapped his lips around her and scraped his teeth along her sensitive skin. She gasped at the feeling and dropped the half washed dish with a splash. 

"I found your weak spot," he smiled into her skin, before inching upwards and biting her soft skin again.

"Ben," she basically moaned, sticking out her ass and pressing into his crotch. She could feel him already hard beneath his uniform pants.

"I'm so glad I can finally do this," he whispered into her skin.

Suddenly Rey's mind was overflowing with thoughts. How many times had Ben watched her doing dishes and wanted to bend her over and fuck her from behind? How often had he seen her doing something ordinary and wished he could take her skin in between his teeth? The thought only turned her on more and she pushed her ass further into him until he moaned from behind her.

"Turn around," he gasped, and she obeyed. 

Their lips crashed together and he hoisted her up onto the counter, so he was able to properly grind himself against her. She tangled her hands into his messy, black hair, and his worked their way up from her hips, under her shirt, and up towards her breasts.

"Rey!" They heard a voice call from the other side of the locked door.

Ben let out a groan of frustration, "Ignore them, please." 

"Ben," Rey said, gently pushing him away as the person outside called for her again. 

Ben stepped away defeatedly and let Rey hop down from the counter to respond to the voice outside. She twisted open the lock, opened the door, and stepped out of the back room. Ben listened as she greeted the person who'd been calling for her, and he decided to stay in the back and finish up the dishes for her. Despite their relationship being out in the open, he had no desire to have the person out front know what they'd interrupted by calling for her. 

~*~*~*~*~

"I did it!" 

Ben was snapped out of his sleep by Rey's excitement. He'd fallen asleep in one of the chairs in the lobby with his face leaning against his fist. He remembered how he'd been waiting for Rey to finish up her task before heading to bed together, and realized he must've fallen asleep while waiting for her. Ben and Cliff had stopped letting her bring her project into their room, since she'd spend most of the night working on it, and keeping the other two awake. Since then she was only working on it in the lobby.

"You finished it?" Rose's voice chimed in. Rose, who was actually on overnight lobby duty, not Rey. 

"Yeah, it's working!" Rey said, and Ben heard the crackling of radio static, and the faint sound of other human voices through the speaker.

"You're done?" Ben asked, standing up from his chair.

"I just finished it!" Rey smiled up at him, then went back to twisting the dial.

"What time is it?" He asked.

"About 3am," Rose responded.

Ben sighed, "Rey, sweetheart, I am very proud of you, and I wish I could share in your excitement for this... but it's 3am. I'm exhausted."

"Oh, yeah," Rey said, looking back up at him, "Sorry. I guess I got distracted."

"Can we do whatever your plan is in the morning?"

"I guess," Rey sighed.

"Come on," he said, coming around the desk and pulling her in for a hug, "You need rest. You're barely sleeping over this thing nowadays."

"You're probably right."

"He is right," Rose added, "You've been here for most of my overnight shifts. As much as I enjoy the company, you need to sleep."

"Come on," Ben said, "It'll still work in the morning."

Rey started down anxiously at her radio, "I guess I could sleep. I'm just worried about..."

"About what?" Ben asked.

"Nevermind," Rey said, "Let's go to bed. Goodnight, Rose."

Rey took his hand and tugged him along. He was taken aback by her sudden willingness to go to sleep, but he was also too tired to fight it. He followed her out of the lobby and into their room willingly.

As per usual, Cliff was on his night shift out front. Ever since Rey and Ben had become a couple he'd signed up for more overnight shifts. He'd said he "wanted to give them some space," and Ben had rolled his eyes at the implication.

So as soon as the door was shut Rey turned to Ben.

"Can I tell you about my plan?" She asked.

"Yeah, absolutely. I've kind of been waiting for this," he told her.

"But I need you to promise me that you won't try to stop me. No matter how ridiculous it sounds."

"Um, okay. You're concerning me just a little bit."

"I-I think-" Rey hesitated, unsure of how to word her plan, "I want to try to contact Zelda."

"Zelda?" Ben replied, "The Scottish lady who got picked up by the UFO?" 

"Yes."

Ben stood in stunned silence with his mouth agape, trying to come up with something supportive to say next.

"I know how it sounds," Rey said, "and it is a long shot, which is why I've been keeping it a secret. But I think if we can get in contact with her she could help us."

"Help us how?"

"She might know more about this than we do," Rey started, "Assuming she's actually from space, this is a space issue. The whole planet is off it's axis. She might have some ideas on how to fix that."

"Fix it?"

"I don't know. I really don't, but I figure if anyone knows it's her. Besides, why would she just show up right at the beginning of all this and then leave after it started? For all we know she's responsible!"

"I understand your theory and I think it's possible."

"Thank you."

"It's just a huge stretch. How do we even know if she's still close enough to the earth to be able to hear us?"

"We don't," Rey sighed, looking defeated, "I know it's a long shot but it's the only idea I have. I just hate this so much. I don't like being confined to a motel, I miss my old life, I hate managing people, and I will do anything I can to go back to the way things were before."

Ben pulled her in for a hug and rested his chin on the top of her head, "I know. We'll try your idea and if it doesn't work we can contact other towns and collaborate with them so that this responsibility isn't sitting on your shoulders anymore. Sooner or later this will all be fixed. I know it will. We won't have our exact same lives back but it will still be okay. We'll have each other." 

Rey nuzzled into the soft fabric of his t-shirt, "I just want this to be over."

"I know."


End file.
